Open Up
by Chocolate-daddy
Summary: A lot has happened during Edward's travels and it has left his heart in shambles. During a routine visit home, he meets a hopeful author who strives to open him up show him the brighter sides of life.  Post Brotherhood  EDxOC
1. Chapter 1

**Open Up**

It's been awhile since I've written any form of fanfiction, but this story has been stuck in my head for weeks. I had to get it written and what better place than Any who, I hope you all enjoy and reviews are appreciated but not required.

Typical Disclaimer: FMA does not belong to me. But Cecelia does

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><p>Most people would be bundled up in their homes when snow was coming down in buckets, so the figure stumbling around outside stuck out like a sore thumb to Winry Rockbell. Just watching the person moving about in the cold made her want to shiver. She unconsciously rubbed her bare arms, but stopped when her grandmother spoke up.<p>

"You should stop staring at that person and let them in." said the older Rockbell from her chair

"Are you sure that's a good idea grandma? For all we know that could be a killer outside."

Pinako clicked her tongue in disapproval and waved a small hand towards the door.

"Oh hush Winry, I don't want someone keeling over in my front yard just because you think there is a killer outside. Now go out there."

Sighing, Winry stepped into her boots and after taking her coat off the hook, shrugged it on and ventured outside. The icy wind nipped at her nose and she quickly made her way through the snow towards her soon to be house guest. As she got closer, she noticed the stranger's figure was fairly small and petite. _This must be a girl, _she thought but quickly dismissed the thought, _I take it back. Edward is small for a boy._

"Hey there," she called out, "what are you doing out here in the middle of a snow storm?"

The stranger looked over at Winry before attempting to run over; it looked more like an awkward stride rather than running, towards her and nearly took a tumble into the snow when he or she stopped in front of her. Winry was greeted by a smiling feminine face. No, girlish was a better word. The girl's facial features were soft and not as defined as her own so she figured the girl's age was in the early teens range.

"You have n-no idea how g-g-glad I am to s-see you," she said in between shivers, "I've been trying t-to find an inn for a-awhile now, you w-w-would happen to know where o-one is w-w-would you?"

"Good grief, you are going in the opposite direction of the inn. But you're welcome to stay at my house until the storm passes."

"Oh w-wow, I really a-appreciate the offer and g-gladly accept."

"I wasn't planning on taking no for an answer," said Winry after a quick chuckle, "now let's get inside because I am freezing my butt off."

Winry picked up her new acquaintance's suit case and both girls shuffled towards the Rockbell household, thankful for the warmth that went straight to their bones when they were inside.

"What were you doing outside this late at night in the middle of a storm, are you trying to freeze to death?" chided Pinako when her granddaughter and company entered the living room.

The girl grinned towards the tiny woman and shrugged. She squirmed out of her jacket and placed it in Winry's hand after the blond offered to hang it up.

"I meant to g-get off at Central, but I fell a-asleep and missed my stop."

Pinako's hand twitched and she resisted from rubbing her temples after hearing the girl's reasoning for being outside. Instead she nodded and asked a new question.

"What's your name, I should at least know that much if you're going to be staying in this house?"

"Cecelia Wheelright."

Winry's eyes nearly bulged out of her head and she grabbed the smaller girl's hands and held them in her own.

"You're a Wheelright? Like from the Wheelright Hardware company?" she asked

"The very same."

Winry squealed and released Cecelia's hands. She had to stop herself from jumping around the room and making a fool of herself in front of her guest.

"You all produce some of the best tools I've ever seen; you have a wrench in every size and don't even get me started on all of the different screw drivers. Only the top notch automail engineers in the world use Wheelright tools and I'm so close to being able to afford your new Silverline series."

Cecelia smiled and simply nodded in response to the blond girl's rant. She only carried the surname, she wasn't caught up in the family business, but she was flattered by the recognition regardless.

"Thank you, I'll be sure to tell my father that you appreciate his work umm…," she trailed off not knowing her hostesses' names.

Pinako scooted off of her plushy armchair and walked past the two young women towards her bedroom.

"Be sure to show Cecelia to a room and Winry," she shot her granddaughter a stern look, "don't talk her ear off about automail."

With that said, the older woman trailed out of the room and Winry waited until she heard Pinako's bedroom door shut before picking up Cecelia's bag.

"It's getting pretty late so I'll take you up to the guest room and you can get settled."

"No, I can carry it. You all are already letting me stay the night, I can carry my own bag umm, and did she say your name was Winry?"

"Oh jeez sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Winry Rockbell and my grandmother's name is Pinako."

"Well it is a pleasure to meet you."

Cecelia lifted up her suitcase and followed Winry up the stairs and down a hallway filled with pictures lining the walls.

"Alright, the guest room is the first door on the right, my room is the last door on the right and my grandmother's is right across from yours. If you need anything feel free to knock on one of our doors, but your best bet is to come get me, she can be a huge grouch if she doesn't get enough sleep."

They both shared a light laugh before bidding each other goodnight and turning into their respective rooms. Cecelia made sure the door didn't slam as she shut it. Her temporary room was basic. Four white walls, a window, desk, bed and a dresser. She set her bag at the foot of the bed and collapsed onto the fluffy twin bed.

"Ohh this feels good." She moaned.

She shimmied under the thick quilt and swaddled herself in it, her body still chilled from wandering outside for a long period of time. A brief yawn slipped past her lips and her eye lids shut. _I'll get to Central tomorrow…yeah…tomorrow._

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><p>That's chapter one for you. Sorry that it's such a filler, but that's just how it has to be. More about Cecelia such as her past and what she looks like will be posted in the next chapter which will be up in the next few days. Thanks for reading.<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

Open Up

Booyah. I didn't think I was going to get the second chapter up this early so I am feeling quite proud of myself. Once again this is a bit of a filler, but it's got some info on Cecelia. The ending is kind of crummy, but I thought it was getting a little long, but oh well. This is chapter two for ya! Reviews are welcomed but not required.

Typical disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>Edward Elric was in a bad mood. No, bad wasn't a powerful enough word to describe his mood. Edward Elric was in a crappy God-awful mood. Things were certainly not going his way. They; him and his brother, arrived in Resembool early yesterday evening and were greeted by a fresh blanket of snow that only continued to grow. The brothers unanimously agreed to spend the night at the local inn rather than try and find their way to Winry's while the snow continued to pile up, although they could have made it there anyway, but decided that that going through the snow wasn't worth the trouble. In theory, the snow fall would stop while they were sleeping and they could make it to the Rockbell home without having to wipe melted snow out of their eyes. But things didn't go according to plan.<p>

"It's not that much snow." Said Alphonse with a slight shrug, but his optimism did not pass on to his older brother.

"Oh whatever Al," he paused to adjust his left boot for safety measures, "let's just go before it gets any worse."

The two braced themselves for the cold and ventured outside of the inn and began their 'journey' through the thick snow laden ground with Edward grumbling and or complaining most of the way and Alphonse merely nodding when prompted to do so. By the time they arrived at the familiar yellow house their pant legs were stiff from the snow and their fingers red and chilled to the bone. Before Ed could lift a hand to knock on the door, it was jerked open and the two Elrics were pulled into a bone crushing hug by their child-hood friend.

"What are you two doing here?" she asked after letting them inside and get accustomed to the warmth of her home.

"Visiting for the holidays of course." said Edward with a grin.

Winry rolled her eyes.

"Yeah right, you just came here because you want presents."

"That's not true Winry, Ed and I wanted to come and see you. It's been awhile and it's been hard to keep in touch since I've been in Xing."

"Oh I guess I believe you both, why don't you come into the kitchen. We just set the table for breakfast."

Edward stayed put and a look of nausea passed through his features. This did not go unnoticed by Winry. She pinched his ear and began dragging him towards the kitchen.

"You're such a troll Edward. I didn't make breakfast, but honestly my cooking isn't that bad."

"I think your cooking is lovely."

"Thank you Alphonse, I knew you were my favorite." said Winry at the same as Ed called him a suck up which earned him a harder pinch, only letting go when they were in the kitchen.

"What is with all of that noise out- oh, hello boys." greeted Pinako with a small smile from the kitchen table.

"Hello Auntie Pinako." they said in almost perfect unison.

Ed shrugged off his coat, hung it on one of the chairs and plopped down on said seat. It was then that he realized that there was another person at the table other than old lady Pinako. A girl was seated at the table and was meticulously arranging silverware on napkins.

"Oh guys, this is Cecelia Wheelright," the girls head popped up when her name was called by the mechanic, "Cecelia, this is Edward and Alphonse Elric."

Ed offered her a small wave while Alphonse more politely stuck out his hand. She shook his hand and returned Ed's small wave.

"Which one is which?"

"I'm Alphonse and the one sitting next to you is Edward."

"Oh, well it is a pleasure to meet you both. I just served breakfast."

After adding the final touches to the silverware and napkins, she passed them out to the Rockbell women and the Elric brothers before picking up the spatula to dish out the pancakes that sat in a neat stack in the middle of the table. The aroma of breakfast wafted up to his nose and he clamped a hand down on his stomach in a feeble attempt to stop it from growling. As soon as he dribbled maple syrup onto his pancakes he was stuffing his mouth with large bites. It may have looked unappealing to everyone else at the table, but he hadn't eaten since lunch yesterday and he was hungry.

"So Cecelia, what brings you to Resembool?" asked Al after everyone had begun eating.

"I was on a train headed to Central, but I fell asleep and missed my stop."

This earned a small chuckle from the group.

"That's too bad; hopefully you'll be able to make it out there."

"I certainly hope so; I had a few things to take care of." she replied and waved her fork around for emphasis.

"What were you going to do up there?"

"I'm trying to get a book published and I planned on showing it off to some of the publishers down there."

Ed finished off his pancakes and was half tempted to reach for seconds but decided against it because the others were still finishing up their first helpings. He looked at Cecelia out of the corner of his eye just as she tucked a bit of her wavy chocolate brown hair behind her ear. Her eyes were an interesting shade of hazel being more green than brown. In his eyes, she was pleasantly plain with normal hair and normal clothes which consisted of a long sleeved crimson red shirt. Obviously he couldn't tell what she was wearing from the waist down seeing as she was sitting at the table. But what mostly made her stick out were her eyes and the freckles that adorned the bridge of her nose.

While he was previewing this new girl, he hadn't noticed that moved to face him and was slowly bringing her face closer to his. Her eyes were bugged out and she made an odd noise which brought Edward out of his thoughts and made him jump slightly.

"What the heck are you doing?"

"What?" she said after enjoying a small laugh at his reaction. "You were staring at me so I figured the polite thing to do was to return the favor."

He scowled and brought his gaze down to his syrupy plate.

"Oh and you have nice eyes, it's like the shade of melted butterscotch."

This only caused his cheeks to take on a tint of pink from all the unwanted attention and chuckles he was getting from his peers because of the new girl.

"Erm…thanks." he mumbled.

Cecelia pushed herself away from the table and rinsed her dishes off in the sink.

"Well I will leave you all to socialize while I'm upstairs taking care of a few things."

And before anyone could object, she was already walking up the stairs and to her 'room.'

"She's a little odd, but she seems pretty nice." said Winry after a brief moment of silence.

"A little odd? Did you see the face she was making at me?"

"Oh whatever, you started it."

"I did not." he retaliated.

"Brother, you sort of did start it. We all noticed you staring at her."

"Al! Why do you keep taking her side you traitor?"

Ed huffed and crossed his arms over his chest, biting the inside of his mouth to stop himself from smiling. He was supposed to be the victim after all. _I feel like this is going to be a nice visit._

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><p>What what! Chapter Two. See you cats in chapter three.<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

Open Up

Booyah. I am on a roll. Here is chapter three, I really enjoyed writing it so I hope you all enjoy reading it. I would also like to thank **Ed'scuriousKitten** and **Wickedstorms** for leaving reviews which were greatly appreciated.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>Cecelia slipped into her temporary room after excusing herself from the table so the Rockbells and Elrics could catch up. She had things to get done anyway. There were a few more finishing touches she wanted to add to her book before showing it off to publishers. They were like sharks and would tear her work apart if there was even the slightest flaw, so everything had to be perfect. She retrieved her portfolio from her suitcase and from there pulled out her project.<p>

Everything had been done by hand. From creating the cover to binding the pages as well as spinning out the words and pictures that decorated said pages. The story was aimed towards children and was rather simple. A little puppy gets separated from his family and he began to search around the village for his loved ones. But during his journey he comes across a pack of mean old mutts who nearly attack him, but a rambunctious cat comes to the rescue and shoos the mutts. They team up and travel around the village looking for his family and after a few days of searching he finds his family. The cat becomes sad and just as she is about to leave her new friend, the family of dogs invite her to stay with them and all was well.

She was sure that it was going to go well because of a special review she received from a family member. Her five year old niece was delighted with the story and this boosted Cecelia's ego and encouraged her to get the book published.

Cecelia went and took a seat at the desk and opened up to the page where the cat makes her first appearance. Pulling a thin black pen from her pocket, she removed the cap and with a steady hand added wispy whiskers to the feline. She did this to the cat on every page the cat was shown and when she finished, reviewed her work with a careful eye. Before she could find another flaw, a quick knock came from the door.

"Excuse me Cecelia, is it alright if I come in?" asked Alphonse from the other side.

"Of course you may."

She turned around in her seat to face the taller Elric boy as he came in, taking a seat at the foot of the bed.

"I didn't want you to be alone up here while the rest of us socialized, that would be unfair."

"That's very sweet of you, but I'm alright up here."

"Oh yeah, you said you were working on a book. What's it about?"

She reached behind her and passed her book on to him.

"Be careful though, it was a pain to put together and if anything were to happen I may have to bury you naked in the snow."

Al laughed but it quickly died away when he realized that she wasn't laughing as well as the stoic look she was giving him.

"I-I promise I won't do any-"he was interrupted by her laugh and he couldn't help but blush.

"I was just kidding. I would never do anything like that."

"Thank goodness, I thought you were being serious."

She simply shook her head and gestured towards the book so that he could get started.

"Feel free to give me any advice and don't hold anything back."

Cecelia watched as Al began looking through her book and she couldn't help but feel a little nervous. Al would be the first person outside of her family to preview her book and she just gave him permission to critique it. She had to stop herself from gnawing on the inside of her cheek while she waited.

"I love cats," he said and passed the book back to her, "I enjoyed it, the pictures were nice and I bet kids are really going to like it."

"I want to see."

Both heads turned to the door to see Edward leaning against the door frame. Al was engrossed in reading the book and Cecelia was busy watching him read the book, so his presence went unnoticed until he spoke up. He strode towards them and looked at the book which was sitting in Cecelia's lap.

"Can I see it?" he asked.

"She did a good job brother."

"Of course you can read it, the more feedback I get the better." she said eagerly.

Cecelia held out her book to him but quickly pulled it back into the safety of her arms.

"Hey, I thought you said I could read it."

"Not with those grubby hands you are."

Edward defensively inspected his hands and noticed that he missed a bit of syrup on his fingertips from breakfast.

"Come on, it's not going to do hurt anything."

She snorted and slipped the book back into her portfolio with a smug look on her face.

"Oh I'll let you read it," she paused to lace her fingers together in a very businesslike manner, "but only if you can beat me in a little game."

Ed's eyebrows shot up in surprise but he took the bait regardless.

"Alright Cecelia, what's this 'challenge'?" he teased and did air quotes as he said challenge which only added fuel to her fire.

"A snow ball fight, Al and I against you and Winry. If you win then I'll let you read my book but if you lose then you have to sleep with Den tonight," she offered her hand to him, "so do we have a deal Elric?"

"You're on. Be outside in twenty minutes." He said while giving her hand a firm shake before leaving to retrieve his team mate.

Al sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, his eyes flickering from Cecelia to where his brother once stood.

"Good grief, how did I get dragged into this?"

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><p>That's chapter three for you and I hope you enjoyed it. I'm hoping to have chapter four up relatively soon. Thanks for reading and reviews are appreciated but not required.<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

Open Up

Here is chapter four. It will probably be the last chapter for at least two or three days, it's a three day weekend and I've got to live it up xD I would like to thank **Luv4anome202** and **Lady Akhisane **for leaving reviews which were greatly appreciated. I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

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><p>Typical Disclaimer: I do not own FMA, but I do own Cecelia<p>

"Listen up comrade," said Cecelia as she slowly paced back and forth through the snow, "this is a war and I don't want any limp noodles on my side, ya got me kid?"

All nodded sheepishly.

"Good, now our enemies are the Blond Bandits. They're mean, they're ruthless, they will stop at nothing and I mean nothing to get what they want. So we've got to hit them and we've got to hit them hard."

She pounded her fist into her other hand for emphasis.

"The most important thing right now is to take out the girl, she is their strategist. Without her the little blond one will be helpless," she paused while Alphonse laughed before continuing, "I'll distract the blond one while you sneak through the back and infiltrate the enemy base and take out the strategist. It will be a piece of cake from there."

Peaking over the top of their base, Cecelia scanned the battlefield for the Blond Bandits. Her eyes zeroed in on their base and all she could see was their hat covered heads.

"Ha those idiots, their wall isn't high enough at all," she turned to Al, "but don't let that fool you, this could be a trap. For now we're going to prepare our ammo."

They both got to work scooping up snow and packing them into tight little balls, adding the weapons to their growing stock pile of snowballs.

"Hey, are you babies ready to start this thing or what?" called Winry from her side of the field.

"Bring it on losers." replied Cecelia.

She squatted so that she could see over their base and loaded herself up with snowballs.

"Where are you-ack!"

A snowball smacked against her head and she vigorously shook her head to get the snow off of her head. She began lobbing snowballs towards the enemy and couldn't help but snicker when she heard Winry cry out.

"Forget the original plan Al, we're going to ambush them."

"Are you sure that's a good idea? I mean we just started and all."

She turned and gave him the scariest look she could muster up.

"Are you questioning your commanding officer?" she asked

"No ma'am."

"So let's move out soldier."

The duo grabbed as many snowballs as they could, going so far as stuffing a few of the bigger ones into their pockets before standing up and entering no man's land. They slowly tiptoed towards the Blond Bandit's base when Ed and Winry; who had snow stuck in her hair, stood up and began their attack.

"We've got to retreat." She called to Al who was trying to return fire but it was a feeble attempt.

Cecelia and Al scurried back to their base and leaned against their thick snowy base's wall.

"So that didn't really work out." He said while wiping snow off of his jacket.

"No kidding, we'll have to come up with another plan… I've got it."

She snickered before leaning in to whisper her master plan into her partner's ear.

Edward and Winry were clutching their stomachs which were cramping up from all of their laughing. The mechanic reached up and brushed away a stray tear and took a deep breath.

"That was hilarious; did you see Cecelia's face when we started pelting them?"

"It was priceless, there is no way they are going to win." He boasted with a pompous grin on his face.

"Brother!"

His ears perked up and he looked over his base to see Alphonse standing and waving a small white flag. _Where did he even get the flag? _He watched Cecelia's arms poke up and pull on his brother's arm, but he shook her off.

"I don't want to be on Cecelia's team, she is going to be the death of me if I stay any longer."

Ed waved his brother over and gave him a good hard clap on the back when he was on the _winning_ side.

The trio watched as Cecelia jumped up and enthusiastically waved her arms around.

"You big fat traitor," she yelled at them, "you're weak!"

"Are you ready to surrender yet Wheelright?"

He couldn't help but chide her. Seeing the way her face scrunched up in disapproval of the situation was amusing and it only encouraged him to harass her some more. _I haven't had fun like this in forever. This girl is quite the character. _It was as if she read his mind because as soon as he finished the thought, Cecelia stuck her tongue out at him and with a finger, dragged the skin underneath her left eye down.

"You may have one this battle, but the war is far from over."

"You're a one woman army; you may as well give up. It's three against- ahhh."

He jumped up and down and clawed at his back as very cold snow slid across his skin, leaving a trail of goose bumps in its wake. He narrowed his eyes at the two laughing figures behind him, especially because Al had his hands 'innocently' behind his back and was whistling a little tune. Winry wasn't doing a very good job at hiding her smiling face from her glove either.

"I can't believe this, my own team mate is laughing at me and my brother is a double agent."

"All's fair in love and war Ed." yelled Cecelia in between laughs.

Unbeknownst to the young adults frolicking in the snow, Pinako Rockbell was watching the whole scene play out from her bedroom window. She smiled, enjoying the sight of her granddaughter playing outside with her best friends and the new girl that sparked the snow war. Den looked up at his owner who in turn gave him a good scratch behind the ears.

"Oh Den, they need this," she sighed, "Winry and those boys missed out on a childhood they deserved."

Pinako willed with all her heart that this girl; who managed to bring out the playful antics in her family and friends, would stay with them as long as possible.

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><p>Woohoo chapter four! I hope you all enjoyed. Reviews are welcomed but not required.<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

Open Up

Finally I've got chapter five up and I apologize for such a long delay. I've been catching up on make up work because I got my wisdom teeth out today and didn't want to be buried with homework when I returned. But expect a few updates in the next three to four days because I'm going to be cooped up in my room. I appreciate everyone who reviewed and hope you all like this chapter.

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><p>Edward pulled his blanket tighter around him and tried to properly grip his steaming cup of hot chocolate, but the way his fingers were shaking only made his sweet drink slosh out of the cup and onto the table. It was a similar story for the rest of his peers at the table. They were all cold from their time outside, their snowball fight turning into 'let's all gang up on Ed and bury him in the snow.' This of course was instigated by Cecelia. He glanced at her just as she lifted her own cup to her lips. She took a large gulp but soon after spewed the contents of her mouth onto the table.<p>

"Gah, that was really hot." She wailed while fanning her tongue.

Ed openly laughed at her while Al and Winry tried feebly covering their mouths with their hands to hide the fact that they were laughing. Winry went to the sink and retrieved a dish rag from the sink. She passed it onto Cecelia who worked on wiping up the mess.

"Smooth move Cece-ew!" he was interrupted by a soggy chocolaty rag smacking into his face.

Now it was Cecelia's turn to laugh and she had no intentions of showing him any mercy. Her laugh was full of gusto and showed no remorse in rubbing the rag into his face. Ed swatted her hand away and shot her a mean look.

"What the heck was that for?"

"What?" She shrugged innocently. "It slipped."

He groaned and went to the sink to wash the mess off of his face before it started to get sticky. _Stupid Cecelia, she is seriously on a roll with this 'harass Edward' game of hers. _

"What happened to him?" asked Pinako when she entered the kitchen.

"That brown haired menace attacked me."

"I did no such thing," She retorted, "Pinako, could I please use your telephone?"

The older woman gestured towards the living room and Cecelia excused herself, but not before sticking her tongue out at her blond haired victim. She had to pause a moment to remember her home phone number. When it came back to her she was quick dial and her foot tapping impatiently while she waited to be put through.

"This is the Wheelright house hold, may I ask who is calling?" asked a smooth deep voice.

"Dad, it's me Cecelia."

She scowled when she heard a loud groan.

"Cecelia, where are you?"

"Hehe…well you see I'm in Resembool… I kind of ummm…missed my stop."

"And why exactly did you miss your stop?"

"I fell asleep."

Her father sighed and she could practically see him rubbing his mustache in a frustrated manor.

"Well who have you been staying with?"

"Pinako and Winry Rockbell, they have been very sweet to me. They're automail mechanics ya know. Winry was going on and on about how great our-"

"Cecelia please, talk a little slower. I'll be sure to send them something for taking you in, now stay on the line, your-"he was cut off by a loud rustle from his end of the line.

"Cecelia sweet heart, where are you?" asked her mother with panic riddled in her voice.

"I'm fine mama; I've been staying with a friend."

"Oh thank goodness," she paused to let out a sigh, "When my friend from Central called and said that you hadn't come in I thought I was going to die. I could have gotten my first grey hair."

"But mom…you already have gray hair." She said with a matter of fact tone.

There was a pregnant silence and her father spoke up.

"Your mother left, you know she is sensitive about her looks. "

"I didn't mean to hurt her feelings; I was just saying that she has gray hair."

"You really ought to think before you speak," he scolded, "anyway, I'll be arranging for you to head to Central when the weather clears up. There has been a lot of snow up here."

"Alright father, I'll talk to you later and I love you." She hung up the phone.

"Your parents sound like quite the characters." said Alphonse as he entered the living room.

Cecelia smiled and patted the seat next to her on the couch which he graciously took.

"Listening to my conversations hm?" she teased.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop."

"Oh shush, you're fine. They just thought I died or something when I didn't show up in Central."

"As they should be, I would be worried too if my daughter didn't show up where she wasn't supposed to be."

She batted at his arm and giggled.

"You make it sound like I'm some teenager."

"Well aren't you?" he asked in all seriousness.

She smacked his arm again and fanned her face which had a smug look plastered on it.

"Oh Alphonse you charmer," she flirted and waggled her eye brows at him; "my youthful looks seem to have fooled you. I'm twenty."

Alphonse couldn't believe what he had heard. He was sure that she was just a seventeen year old who looked just a bit older than her age. He couldn't help it as he leaned in a little bit and stared at her. She wasn't giving any indications that she was lying, but maybe she was just a talented liar.

"What? Is it really that hard to believe?" she asked.

"Well…I thought that you were in your teens…"

This time she laughed out loud and landed a good slap on his knee. Cecelia knew she looked fairly young but that was a first.

"I'm flattered, but I am definitely twenty, now what about you mister?"

"I'm eighteen, but my birthday is coming up. I'm about a year and three months younger than Ed is."

"So blondie and I are about the same age? Now isn't that exciting?"

Al nodded in confirmation.

"Why don't you tell me about yourself Cecelia? We're still practically strangers."

Cecelia rubbed her chin and shrugged. She didn't feel like there was much to tell. She was normal young woman who was trying to make it big in a man's world without too much assistance from her parents.

"Hmmm where to start… Well I'm from Rush Valley and that is where the rest of my family is. My birthday is in the summer… I like to eat food so I've gotten pretty good at cooking… and I want to write children's stories. I'm not very exciting as you can tell."

"No way Cecelia, it's hard to come up with things on the spot. But Briggs is pretty far, that must have taken a lot of courage to leave all on your own."

Cecelia flexed her arms and shot him a sexy look. Al was immediately reminded of a female and less muscular version of Armstrong.

"What can I say? I'm an adventurer always looking for a thrill," she stopped to show off her nearly perfected 'heart stopper' smirk, "Why don't you tell me about your family? Other than Ed."

Cecelia didn't miss it when Al's body stiffened, his back straightened and his face grew a little pale. He awkwardly looked at his lap and twiddled his thumbs.

"Well…uhh, I'm not sure-"he was cut off by his older brother's interruption.

"I don't think that is any of your concern." said Ed with a deep frown.

"I was just curious, you don't need to get all crabby just because I asked a question." She snapped.

"Well I don't think that you need to be getting into mine and Al's business."

"I didn't want to hear his life story, I was just making conversation."

"Maybe you should start a new conversation then." he said while crossing his arms over his chest and giving her a strict look.

She stood up in a huff and shot him a rude look of her own.

"I was just asking him a question Edward, I wasn't trying to learn all your secrets or anything, but you know what? I'll just leave the conversation up to you then if you don't want me to be a part of it." She snapped.

Cecelia stood up and made her way past the brooding blond blocking the doorway, making sure to give him a good push with her shoulder as she stepped around him. She scurried to the kitchen and scowled into the kitchen sink which still held the soggy rag.

"That jerk…" she mumbled under her breath.

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><p>See you all in chapter 6 which will hopefully be up by tonight. Reviews are appreciated but not required.<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

Open Up

Score. I've got chapter six up and ready to go for you all and I made it longer than usual as an added bonus. Thanks to everyone who has read this story and to those who have reviewed, I appreciate it and you all are the reason that I continue to actually publish this fanfiction :3 Enjoy!

Super Disclaimer (I forgot one last chapter) I don't own FMA, but I do on Cecelia.

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><p>Ed kept his eyes glued on the wall as the brunette haired girl purposefully bumped him with her shoulder as she passed. He had to clench and unclench his hands so he could keep his cool and not go back to chew her out. Alphonse broke the silence that filled the room with a soft sigh.<p>

"It wasn't her fault Ed, she didn't know better." he murmured.

He knew his little brother was right, but he was still irritated with Cecelia regardless.

"I know that, but she was being just as rude as I was."

"I didn't say that she handled the situation any better," Al stood up and walked to his brother, "I'm just saying that you can't blame her for being curious and it's not like I told her anything."

Now it was Ed's turn to sigh and he raked his fingers through his bangs, a habit that only came forth when he was frustrated. He looked into Al's amber eyes and regret filled his being. They had gone through so much together and when Al sacrificed himself just so he could have his arm back, it killed him on the inside. Ed placed his arm on his brother's shoulder and gave it a good squeeze.

"I know Al; I just need to take a breather."

Ed turned on his heel and entered the kitchen where the two Rockbell women were seated at the table, eyeing the obviously angered girl standing by the sink with her back to them.

"Auntie Pinako, is there a room upstairs for Al and I?"

"Don't insult me Edward, of course there is. You two will have to share though and your room is across from Winry's."

"Thanks."

He went up the stairs and down the lit up hall, knowing exactly which room to go to. He assumed the room across from Pinako's was being occupied by Cecelia. He slipped into the extra room and flopped onto the bed with a loud thud. He rolled onto his back and rested with his arms underneath his head.

His mind was jumping from one thing to another and it was giving him a head ache. At one second he was thinking about Al's old suit of armor, then to not being able to use alchemy anymore and another second it was how mean Cecelia could look when she was angry. It seemed that both she and Winry had bad tempers.

"This is why women are such a hassle…" he grumbled.

Ed moved his arms from under his head across his chest and shut his eyes. _A good nap will cool me off. _He thought to himself before letting his mind drift to simpler things before he fell asleep.

Alphonse trailed into the kitchen after his brother and he couldn't hide the frown that played on his lips as his older brother went up stairs. He felt bad. If he had changed the topic then Ed and Cecelia's argument wouldn't have happened in the first place.

"Cecelia, will you please make dinner for tonight? Breakfast was wonderful and I don't have time to prepare anything." asked Pinako as she made her way towards her work shop.

"Sure."

Al's frown stayed in place when he heard how dejected Cecelia sounded.

"We've got a big order that needs to get finished up so we've got to get some work done, but you're welcome to use whatever you can find in the kitchen." explained Winry.

Winry sent Al a concerned look before retreating to the basement with her grandmother.

"Umm Cecelia."

She turned around to face him and offered a small smile.

"Sorry for going all psycho back there, I just didn't like the way he was talking to me is all."

"Ed's never had the best people skills, but he really didn't mean to act like that I swear. Our past is just a…sensitive topic that we don't like to discuss.

"I definitely understand and respects that," her smile transformed into a grin and she gestured towards the kitchen, "now why don't you help me scavenge through this kitchen for some food."

"Absolutely chef Wheelright."

The both of them began searching through every nook and cranny in the Rockbell kitchen before deciding that spaghetti would make for a nice winter meal. Al had to grab a pot from the top shelf for his smaller companion. After a good ten minutes of finding things and prepping their meal, Al and Cecelia were ready to get started.

"Alright Al, because I like you I will give you the manly job of making the spaghetti sauce and I'll handle the noodles."

"How is making spaghetti sauce manly?" he asked.

"You get to handle the meat. Duh."

They both worked in silence. Al browned the ground beef before adding it to a pot of tomato paste and while Cecelia waited for the water to boil, she grated parmesan cheese that she hoped was fresh.

"Cecelia… you aren't mad at Ed are you?" he asked after she added a handful of noodles to the now boiling water.

"Not really, but why are you so worried about it? It's not like I'm mad at you or anything."

"I don't know… I just don't like fighting is all."

"Well aren't you the pacifist Al." she teased.

_If only you knew the half of it._ He thought to himself while stirring his red tomato concoction.

"But you don't need to worry about it; I'll smooth things out with Ed later. I can't make him a bad guy when I have only known him for less than a day. That would be really lame."

Al smiled down at the sauce and nodded. Now all he had to do was get Ed to come down from their little argument. He continued on his part of the meal and turned down the stove when he added the finishing spices to the tomato sauce. Cecelia reached over and ran her finger through the sauce before popping it into her mouth.

"That's gross Cecelia, you should have used a spoon."

"It wasn't gross, the sauce was good," she said sarcastically, "now go get that troll that you are related to. Dinner is almost done."

Alphonse nodded and excused himself from the kitchen. He went straight to the room that Pinako issued to them and made sure to enter quietly just in case Ed was sleeping. And it turns out Al's intuition was correct. Edward was sprawled across the bed with his limbs going ever which way.

"You know, Aunti Pinako would be mad is she knew your shoes were on the bed." He said loud enough to wake his brother.

"Yeah yeah," he said groggily before rolling out of bed and onto his feet, "what she doesn't know won't kill her."

"Well Cecelia and I made dinner and it's about ready. Will you go get Winry and Pinako while I finish helping out with the food?" asked Al.

"I guess so."

The two left their room and went their separate ways. Al went to work with setting the table while Ed retrieved the two mechanics, which proved to be a harder task than he thought. Those two were so engrossed in their work that they didn't notice him come in nor did they hear him as he called their names.

When everyone was finally up and seated at the table; Winry sitting between Cecelia and Ed, they started to fill their plates.

"Wow Cecelia, this is pretty good." said the blond mechanic after her first bite.

"Don't give me all the credit, Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome made the tomato sauce."

This earned a round of laughter from everyone from the table with the exception being Alphonse who bashfully played with his food and looked away, hoping his peers didn't notice his pink cheeks. Over all things went smoothly during dinner. Ed ate a good three helpings before he was full, Cecelia got caught sneaking scraps to Den under the table which earned her a good rap on the wrist from Pinako, Al and Winry discussed Al's studies in Xing and Pinako simply ate her food.

After dinner, Cecelia retreated to her room. Ed and Al said that they would take care of the dishes while Winry and Pinako went back to work. This left the brunette with nothing to do so she figured getting ready for bed a little earlier than usual wouldn't hurt anyone. She swapped out her clothes for a yellow button down shirt that had a black trimming as well as pants to match. She was in the middle of brushing the tangles out of her hair when a knock came from behind the closed door.

"Come in." she answered from the foot of her bed.

Her brows shot up when Ed came in. He shut the door behind him and soon after he began to sheepishly shuffle his feet. Now she hadn't known him long, but seeing him so awkward and nervous seemed uncharacteristic for him.

"Can I help you with something?" she asked.

"Oh yeah, I just wanted to, you know…" he trailed off and rubbed the back of his head.

"No, I really don't know."

"Iwantedtoapologize." He said as fast as he could before his cheeks turned red.

Cecelia smirked and leaned forward to rest her elbows on her knees. She was positive that she heard the word apologize in there and planned on taking advantage of the situation.

"I didn't quite catch that."

"Ugh, I wanted to say that I'm… come on Cecelia you heard me the first time." He whined.

"I have no idea what you said. I bet you just insulted me, how dare you."

She put up her best pout and waited to see if it worked. And it did, he furrowed his brow and his mouth gaped open. He was obviously at a loss for words, thinking that he had only upset her again.

"No no no, I didn't I swear," he let out a deep breath, "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for what happened earlier today.

"Well jeez, why couldn't you have just said that in the first place?"

"I did."

"Oh, well speak up next time Ed."

Cecelia stood up from the bed and walked over to him, stopping when she was face to face to him. The top of her head came up to his chin so she barely had to look up to see into his golden hued eyes.

"I accept you apology and I won't butt into yours of Al's past ever again. I promise."

She stuck out her hands and pressed them against his chest, giving him a light push so that his back hit the wall.

"Now go away, it's rude to disturb a woman when she is getting ready for bed."

Ed laughed and turned to leave her room, but stopped when she called his name.

"I forgot one thing."

She walked over to the desk and fished her book from her portfolio. After giving it a quick wipe down with her hands, she passed it on to Ed.

"I will let you read this masterpiece out of the kindness of my heart even though I totally wrecked you in the snowball fight."

"Well aren't you the Saint?" he teased.

"Just call me Saint Cecelia."

"No, but thanks for letting me read this, even though you didn't actually win."

"Don't make me retract my offer." She warned.

Ed chuckled and shook his head before leaving the room. He shut the door behind him and looked down at the book at his hands then back at the closed door."

"Good night Cecelia." he said.

Just as he was about to make his way towards his and Al's room, he was stopped by Cecelia's soft reply.

"Good night Ed."

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><p>Yeauhhhhh, chapter six. Reviews are appreciated but not required and I will see you cats in chapter seven.<p> 


	7. Chapter 7

Open Up

I've got chapter seven up for you, I'm not really sure how I feel about this chapter. I had to rewrite it eight times until I felt it was good enough to be published. It's more of a filler, I was planning on making this chapter jump straight into Cecelia going to Central, but I felt like that was too cut and dry. Oh well. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and feel free to leave a review or two, they're really encouraging :D And thank you to those who have reviewed.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>It was early in the morning and on any other morning, everyone in the Rockbell house would be fast asleep, but on the morning of Al's birthday, Winry was a woman on a mission. She already had Cecelia dressed and ready to go in the kitchen and Ed would be her next victim. Opening the door as quietly as she could, she slipped into Ed and Al's room. <em>Aww, how cute.<em> Both boys were sprawled out in different locations; Al had the bed while Ed took to the floor. _They look so…innocent. _

With her foot, she nudged Edward's side until he began to stir. He let out an incoherent complaint and swatted at her foot, but made no other movement. She jabbed her foot into his side with enough force to cause him to shoot straight up. He shot her a mean look, but didn't yell at her for the sake of not waking up his brother. She gestured for him to follow her out and he did so begrudgingly.

"What the hell was that for Winry?" he hissed when he heard the click of the door.

"I need you to go into town and pick some stuff up."

"You're joking right?"

He turned on his heel so he could go back to bed, but was stopped when she grabbed a fist full of his hair and gave a sharp tug.

"Stop it. That hurts, why can't you just go?"

"I'm going to entertain Al while you are gone."

"Just make Cecelia go," he whined and tried his puppy eyes on her, "I'm tired."

"She doesn't know how to get there," Winry started down the stairs, "and if I don't see you down here in the next ten minutes then you are going to have hell to pay."

She left Ed to get dressed and went down the see how Cecelia was doing. The girl in question was in the same spot she'd left her, slumped over onto the kitchen table with her arms dangling off the sides.

"Oh come on, it's not that early," she checked her watch, "it's 5:47, that isn't that early."

Cecelia's head lolled from side to side and she lazily lifted a hand to wave the blond away.

"That is early, why do I have to go the store? I don't even know where it is."

"That's why I'm sending Edward with you."

"Why can't he go by himself?"

"Because I don't trust him to get everything, now stop asking me all these questions."

Winry turned away from her complaining companion and was about to go check up on Ed when he came trudging down the stairs. He looked quite disheveled. His usual braid had fly away hairs all over and his clothes were wrinkled. Cecelia, who managed to finally sit up and get herself situated, openly pointed out his poor appearance.

"You look awful." she said.

"Oh shut up, you don't look any better."

"But I do look better."

Before Ed could fire something back, Winry stood in between them and shoved a folded sheet of paper into his hand. He read through the lengthy list and stuffed it into his pocket. Winry pulled their coats off the coat rack and after passing each coat to its respective owner, ushered the two outside.

"And don't come back until you have everything on that list." She said with a grin before shutting the door.

Cecelia looked over to Ed and back to the door.

"I hate her."

Edward and Cecelia made it into town without any major complications. The latter managed to step into a snow covered hole and they had to make a quick stop to pull her foot out without twisting her ankle. They were both silent for the most part, but he would occasionally point out certain land marks to her as they passed them.

"What's on the list anyway?" she asked when they passed the first vendor.

"It's for the most part a grocery list."

He handed over their list and let her look it over.

"Most of this is food, but she did add on a few tools at the end."

"She did?" He looked over her shoulder and read the last few items, "I thought those were just some foreign spices or something."

Folding the list up, she rolled her eyes and handed it back to him.

"How in the world does a drill bit set sound like a spice?" she poked him in the side.

Ed's cheeks flushed with embarrassment and he looked away, rubbing the back of his head. When she started to giggle, he spun on his heel and began marching towards the butcher, leaving her behind.

"Hey, wait up you troll!"

The rest of their morning was spent locating the items on Winry's list. It annoyed Ed that Winry expected him to pay for everything and it annoyed him further that Cecelia ended up paying for everything because he'd left his billfold at home. She even paid for breakfast. _How much money does this girl have? _

"Do you mind if we take a break?" she asked half way through their trip.

"No that's fine."

Ed set down his load and she did the same, quickly stuffing her hands into her pockets as soon as they were free of anything. He tugged on her arm, pulling her hand out of her pocket. Ignoring her protests, he examined her tender skin. It was raw and red from the bitter cold air.

"Why didn't you bring gloves?"

Pulling her hand away, she replied defensively "I forgot them at the house; I didn't do it on purpose."

With a sigh, he pulled his gloves off and held them out to her. He gazed up at the cloudy sky, making it a point to not look her in the eyes to avoid letting her see the blush that was forming on his cheeks. Cecelia stared at his offering before tentatively receiving the gloves. They were still warm from his hands.

"Thanks Ed…" she mumbled, slapping her newly gloved hands bashfully over her cheeks.

"Uhh yeah, no problem."

Ed and Cecelia stood there a few moments longer before taking up their loads and continuing their walk to Winry's house.

"Thank you all so much, this has been the best birthday ever." said Alphonse as his special day started coming to a close.

Everyone was seated in the living room around Al as he opened his presents. He got a new dress shirt from Winry, an Alkahestry book from Ed, a photo with him and Ed as kids from Pinako and a stuffed cat plush from Cecelia. Wrapping paper surrounded him on all sides and he carefully set his gifts aside. He went around the room giving everyone a quick hug and a special thank you. Working together, they got the living room cleaned up and Pinako excused herself to her room to get ready for bed when things were cleaned to her standards.

The young adults got comfortable in the living room. Ed and Winry were in an in depth conversation about how he was treating his leg while Al and Cecelia were chatting about Central. She'd never been before while he had spent a great amount of his time there when he was younger.

"When do you think you'll be heading into Central?"

"Probably soon, the snow is starting to melt so I bet the trains will be up and running again."

Ed jumped into the conversation, "You know, we could all go up there at the same time. I need to head back into work and Al needs to get back to studying anyway. The ride up there can be boring so the more the merrier"

Cecelia, Al and Ed all began planning their train ride to Central, not noticing the sad look on Winry's face when she dismissed herself for bed.

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><p>That's chapter seven for you and I promise that chapter eight will have more humor in it. See you all then.<p> 


	8. Chapter 8

Open Up

Here is chapter 8 and they are finally leaving Resembool! Although it took a lot of editing on this chapter, I'm really quite pleased with it and would love to hear what you all think about it. **hint hint** It's a little fluffy and it's got some humor...well at least I laughed while I was writing it. I hope you all enjoy :3

Typical disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>"Oh come on Winry," pleaded Ed, "please don't cry.<p>

The young mechanic's face puckered up as wet trails appeared on her face. The tremble of her lower lip shook Ed with guilt and he had to look away. He wasn't good with crying, especially when she was the one crying. Noticing his discomfort, Cecelia bumped him out of the way with her hip and took charge of the situation. She brought Winry down into a hug which the blond returned.

"It's okay Winry, I promise that I'll write you a letter once a week and I'll call you whenever I can and I'm definitely going to come and visit," she held the crying girl at arm's length, "now let's see a smile. Crying makes you look like an old lady."

A smile managed to make its way onto her face and Cecelia gave her one last hug before letting her go. Al came in for his turn to hug the mechanic, offering similar encouraging words that worked in stopping her tears, but when the conductor called for everyone to board the train, they only returned. She ushered them all onto the train, going down to where they were seated when Cecelia stuck her head out the window.

"Don't forget, you all promised to write and call me!" she called as the train began to pull away.

"I always feel so bad when we leave." said Al when the train station was out of sight.

"It's not like we could bring her with us," said Ed as he started dealing with their suitcases, "she has customers in Resembool and she has to take care of Grannie."

After the suitcases were dealt with, everyone got situated. Al and Cecelia sat on one bench while Ed sat across them on a bench of his own. With his back against the window and his left leg propped up on the bench, he was feeling quite comfortable until a pair of small dainty feet came to rest on his abdomen. His eyes narrowed in Cecelia's direction and she merely grinned in response and folded her hands neatly in her lap.

"Do I look like a foot rest to you?"Ed asked.

"Well I couldn't see the bench, so you were my only other option."

"Whatever."

Crossing his arms over his chest, he decided to leave her be. She wasn't exactly bothering him and her feet weren't very heavy.

"So Cecelia, what do you plan on doing when you get into Central?" asked Al in an attempt to get a conversation started.

"I'm not really sure, probably find a hotel."

"You know Ed has an apartment in Central, I bet he would let you stay with him."

Cecelia stuck her index finger in her mouth and pretended to gag.

"No way, Ed will try to man handle me while I'm sleeping or something." she explained with a giggle.

"What?" Ed pushed her feet off and he sat up, his cheeks; much to his chagrin, lighting up with a charming shade of pink. "I wouldn't man handle you and besides, there's nothing to manhandle." he shot back.

Her face flushed with a mixture of embarrassment and anger. She crossed her arms over her chest and turned slightly in her seat so she was facing more towards Al.

"How rude, just because I have smaller assets doesn't mean that I can't be manhandled," she elbowed Alphonse in the arm, "I bet Al would manhandle me if I let him." The young man waved his hands defensively.

"Don't bring me into this." He pleaded.

Ed snorted, "Oh please, Alphonse has better taste than that."

"You're right; Al is a gentleman and would never assault a young maiden, but you on the other hand… I'm not so sure, maybe you should start wearing a sign that says 'I love creeping out women' to save women everywhere from your wrath."

"Will you two please stop arguing about manhandling?" Al broke in gently, bashfully keeping his gaze on his lap, "it's making me uncomfortable."

Edward and Cecelia both nodded in silent agreement and the argument dissipated.

The majority of their trip was pleasantly spent on small talk or various other activities. When the brothers began talking about Ed's work in Central or Al's studies in Xing, Cecelia took to a knitting project she had started while in Resembool. And when Cecelia and Al discussed various cooking techniques, Ed briefly listened in on the conversation before getting as comfortable as he could on the hard wooden bench and took a nap. Midway through the train ride, the trio enjoyed a meal that Winry had packed for them. Deli sandwiches with a wide array of fruits and veggies to choose from and there was even chilled bottled milk for Cecelia and Alphonse. Edward was very open about his disgust for a 'nasty clear substance that was secreted from a cow.'

"Ew Cecelia, wipe your mouth." Ed held a napkin out to her, gesturing at the milk mustache that graced her upper lip.

"And waste something so tasty? Never."

Chills ran up his spine after she licked her milk mustache off and he literally had to resist the urge to gag. When an attendant came through, Alphonse dumped their trash and excused himself for a restroom break.

Cecelia's attention was drawn to the blond when he lifted his arms high over his head and arched his back, his mouth forming an 'O' while he yawned. _He looks like a cat when it wakes up from a cat nap_. She thought before her mind was dragged elsewhere. His shirt came un-tucked from his waistband while he stretched and the smooth lines of his abdomen came into view and being a young woman, her eyes went straight to this newly revealed area of flesh and they stayed there. To her dismay as well as her embarrassment, she was interrupted from her ogling session when the man of the hour spoke up.

"Oh ho, do you like what you see?" he asked with a smug look.

"W-what, no!" stammered Cecelia, trying to regain her composure but failing when a deep rosy blush took over her face, "you're gross and fat and I was not staring."

"I never accused you of staring, but now that you bring it up, I'm pretty sure I caught you checking me out."

Ed enjoyed being the harasser for a change. He'd only known the brunette for a good three weeks, but she seemed to enjoy teasing him to the point of embarrassment so he planned to take every advantage that this situation could give him.

"Blegh, I would never check you out."

"Sure, whatever you say, but the last time I checked," he paused and patted her knee, "staring at someone equals checking them out, but it's okay, I'll forgive you this time."

Standing up to tuck his shirt back into his waistband, he nearly did a cheer when she squealed in frustration and spun in her seat so that she was facing the window. Her ears were tinted red and her shoulders were slumped in defeat. Ed took his seat, confidently crossing his right leg over the knee of his automail one and be basked in his victory.

"Ummm Cecelia are you alright?" Al asked when he returned from the restroom.

"You're brother is a big egotistical jerk." She snapped, not turning to face the other Elric.

Al shot Ed a questioning look and all he got in response was an innocent shrug.

"Come on slow pokes, we've got places to go." cried Cecelia eagerly after they exited the train. Central's train station was bustling with people either trying to board the trains or trying to leave the station. Ed and Al on the other hand did not share her excitement for the big city and they struggled to keep up with the small young woman who was weaving through crowds of people.

Cecelia felt a sharp tug from behind and she jerked herself forward to catch her balance. A pair of thin hands gripped the strap of her satchel and with a strong pull from their owner, her bag slid off her shoulder.

"Hey!" she cried when the thief started running.

Ed and Al had just caught up with Cecelia when she took off running again.

"Brother, you go find her and I'll catch up." Al took the luggage from Ed and watched him run through the busy train station.

Ed squinted his eyes while he ran through the station, trying to find their missing companion. _Why in the hell does she keep running off? _After a brief chase, he caught sight of her striped sweater and headed in that direction. Keeping his eyes glued on her back, he pushed through a small group of bystanders; yelling an apology as he passed, and was about to call out Cecelia's name but came to a dead stop after watching her throw her body onto someone.

"Cecelia," he snapped when he reached her, "what do you think you're doing?"

She ignored him and scrambled to her feet. Reaching down to the crumpled stranger on the floor, she picked up a bag and slid it onto her shoulder.

"How dare you try and steal from me you bastard."

Adding a hair flip for emphasis, she latched onto his arm and dragged him in the opposite direction of the thief who still lay on the ground. Ed was stunned by her performance and his anger from her causing a scene evaporated, he smiled and pulled her to a stop.

"Wow that was impressive; you caught up to that thief before he could even leave the train station."

"I wasn't going to let him make off with my bag, my portfolio is in here."

Ed and Cecelia eventually made their way back to Al who showed concern after hearing her little story. Dismissing his concern, she let Al and Ed lead her out of the train station. They made their way to Ed's apartment and Cecelia collapsed onto his couch the moment they stepped inside.

"It feels so good to be on something soft," she moaned, reaching forward and stretching to get out the kinks in her back, "I call dibs on the couch."

Ed chuckled and shut the door behind him.

"I thought you said you weren't going to stay here."

"Shut up."

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><p>Haha! chapter 8. I hope you all liked reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it and I will see you all in chapter 9. Reviews are appreciated but not required.<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

Open Up

Sorry everyone for not updating until now! I've been pretty busy lately, I was in a play and had to bust out as many rehearsals as I could, but in my spare time I wrote this up and I hope you all enjoy it. I would like to thank everyone who reviewed because they were really encouraging so keep them coming! Ha. Anywho, I hope you all enjoy

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>The morning had just begun and Al was skimming through an Alkahestry text book at the dining room table when Edward made his daily entrance unusually early. On a typical day it was Al who woke up first, followed by Cecelia and eventually Ed would make a brief appearance before scurrying off to work. But Ed had a little surprise for Cecelia and he willingly sacrificed those precious extra hours of to sleep to see his plan through. After a good two weeks of making various calls to publishing companies, Cecelia finally managed to land an interview and Ed wanted to give her a 'special' awakening to prepare her for her big day.<p>

"What are you doing up so early brother?" Al asked, offering a piece of toast to his brother.

"I've got to do a little something for Cecelia," Ed accepted his offer and began eating, "you might want to go to your room though, because I don't think she's going to like it very much." He warned in between bites.

Sighing, Al shut his book and shook his head. "I should probably stay so I can stop her from killing you."

Ed finished off the toast before donning his signature smirk. "Get ready for a show Al."

He quietly tiptoed into the living room where Cecelia slept soundly on the couch. Although Al offered numerous times to take the couch and let her have the spare room, she insisted on taking the couch. He peeked over the couch's back and saw her sleeping figure. Looking back, he winked at Al before grabbing onto the back of the couch and vigorously rocking it back and forth until the young woman was dumped onto the floor.

Cecelia was pulled from sleep's grasp when she felt herself collide with the floor. Startled, she sat up and checked her surroundings, everything seemed to be intact.

"Okay…so it wasn't an earthquake…"

Laughter erupted from behind her and her eyes narrowed at the sight of Ed doubled over and clutching his stomach.

"Stop laughing you troll, that wasn't funny I was trying to sleep, are you crazy?" she stood up and put her hands on her hips, "I have my interview today so I need as much sleep as I… wait…oh my gosh my interview is today."

She hurdled herself over the couch and dashed past Edward, making sure to throw an elbow into his stomach before locking herself up in the bathroom. Ed seated himself at the table and wiped away a stray tear.

"Oh that was priceless; she thought it was an earthquake."

"Brother, that's no way to wake someone up when they have an important day ahead of them."

"Whatever, she'll be fine," he reached across the table and swiped another piece of toast from Al's plate, "she needed to get up and shower anyway."

The two continued to share breakfast when Cecelia appeared from the bathroom with a cloud of steam behind of her. She was wrapped up in a fluffy white towel and scurried to the couch where her suitcase was. Ed and Al looked away embarrassed. Ed wasn't used to seeing a half naked woman parade around his apartment in a towel and the first sight of skin always sent Al into a tizzy. She grabbed what she needed and returned to the bathroom.

"You should really talk to her about taking her clothes with her into the bathroom." Al suggested.

"Yeah, I'll get right on that."

Cecelia used her towel to rub off the perspiration from the mirror so she could evaluate her outfit which consisted of a beige colored blouse with black trousers. One of the more sophisticated outfits she brought with her for her trip. She twisted her damp hair into a bun at the nape of her neck and pinned it down, small wisps of hair coming undone to frame her face. Giving herself one more review, she exited the bathroom and presented herself to her audience of two.

"What do you guys think?" she asked.

"I think you look very nice Cecelia." Al said while Ed offered simple thumbs up.

She took a seat at the table and accepted the last piece of toast that Al offered. With one hand she held her toast to her mouth and with the other she punched Ed's arm.

"Ow, what was that for?" he rubbed his arm and scooted his chair away from her.

"Don't think I forgot about you making me fall off the couch this morning and I plan on getting you back."

The rest of the morning was uneventful. They all sat around the table until Al had to go and make another round of toast. Ed was the first one to leave for the day. He wished Cecelia good luck before heading to his place of work. When her interview came closer and closer, the nerves began to settle in. She was pacing the living room and Al had to remind her numerous times not to bite her fingernails. He stood up and placed his hands on her shoulders to stop her from moving around.

"Calm down Cecelia, everything will be alright," he smiled and patted her head, "now let's get going. We don't want to be late."

After pulling on their coats and making sure Cecelia had everything she needed in her portfolio, the duo stepped out of the warm apartment to face Central's cold winter air. Al led the way to the interview, taking shortcuts to ensure they get there early enough for Cecelia to run through her game plan. He'd insisted on coming so he wouldn't have to stay cooped up in the apartment. It took a lot of convincing, but Ed managed to get his little brother to agree to stay in Amestris at least until the new year passed so the younger Elric was left with nothing to do with himself. So he took any opportunity he could to get out of the apartment. They weaved through Central streets and alley ways and in no time arrived at a plain and simple café.

"Umm, you're sure this is where they told you to go right?" asked Al, perplexed with the interview's location.

"Yes, the paper said thirteen hundred Summit Lane," she passed on the directions, "take a look for yourself."

He took a brief glance before giving it back.

"Well, I don't know of any other Summit Lane in Central so this has to be it, let's head in."

Al held the door open and they both entered the little café, grateful for the warmth that it provided. Cecelia went to find a table while Al took care of ordering coffees and after a few minutes of waiting they were both seated in a cozy booth with hot cups of coffee in their hands. Cecelia took a long whiff, enjoying the trails of steam rising up to tickle her nose and the scent instantly relaxed her.

"You don't think was some kind of prank, do you?" asked Cecelia a few sips later.

"No one would do someth-"

He was cut off by the bells on the door jingling and an older man in a suit came in. The man went straight to the front counter and whispered something to the attendant.

"Is there a Cecelia Wheelright in the building?" the attendant asked.

Cecelia sat dumbfounded and didn't react until Al's foot collided with her shin. She shot up, nearly knocking the table over as she did and scurried over to the older man. Hesitantly she held out her hand, it took all the willpower she had to stop it from shaking.

"I'm Cecelia Wheelright."

"Pleasure to meet you," he gripped her hand and gave it a good shake, "we spoke over the phone. I'm Mr. Walton and I'll be evaluating today, let's get a table and we'll get started."

"Yes sir."

She trailed behind him as he led the way, grabbing her portfolio from the table she once occupied as she passed it, and when he found a table she sat opposite him. _Here goes nothing. _

Al tapped his fingers on the table top while he waited on his companion. Occasionally he would look back to steal a glance of her and each time he felt bad for Cecelia, her nervousness was visible on her face. He lifted his now cooled off coffee to his lips and took a drink while his mind jumped from one thing to another. He thought about how Ling and May Chang were doing back in Xing and how he would tackle the task of Christmas shopping as well as hiding the presents from his snooping brother. After waiting around for thirty minutes, he began to regret not bringing a book to read. He couldn't just leave because Cecelia wouldn't be able to find her way home and it would be a hassle to go all the way to the apartment and have to turn back around to pick her up. When he finished off his coffee as well as Cecelia's, he stood and made his way to the trash can. Just as he threw away his garbage, he heard the jingle of the door and directed his attention there, just barely catching a glimpse of the older man's back. Smiling, he turned around and spotted Cecelia, but the smile fell from his face when he took in her demeanor.

"Oh no…"

He hurried over to her table and rested a hand on her shoulder. She lifted her head and Al's eyes softened when he saw her green eyes brimming with tears that were ready to spill over.

"Cecelia what happened?"

"H-he was being so nice at first, it looked like he r-really liked it," she hiccupped and wiped at her eyes, "but when he finished looking at it he just started tearing it apart…he said that women have no business doing things other than housekeeping and that working s-should be left to the men."

"I'm really sorry Cecelia," Al picked up her portfolio and helped her up, "let's get you home so I can cheer you up."

She nodded and with a hung head, followed him out of the coffee shop and shuffled behind him while he walked ahead. Disappointment didn't even begin to describe the way she was feeling. She'd worked so hard and to have Mr. Walton tear her work to shreds didn't do much for her pride. _I've been working on this book for over two years and I couldn't even get one compliment from a real publishing guy._ While she was lamenting on her failed interview, they arrived at Ed's apartment and she plopped down on the sofa as soon as the door was unlocked. _Everything was perfect, what went wrong? _The rest of the day was spent with Cecelia lounging on the sofa while Al studied or worked on prepping for dinner.

It was evening when Edward arrived home, hoping to hear how great Cecelia's interview went, but he was instead greeted by her somber face. He kicked off his boots and slipped out of his jacket, hanging it on its post before going over to stand in front of her.

"So how did the interview go?" he asked.

She huffed in response and turned away from him.

"Well…okay then."

Ed left her alone and joined his brother in the kitchen. Al was cutting cooked chicken breast and greeted Ed as soon as he noticed his presence.

"So what's up with Cecelia? She seems really grumpy."

"Her interview didn't go so hot; the guy told her that women should stay at home and leave work to men."

Ed scoffed, Riza and Winry immediately coming to mind. They were both very successful women who were getting along just fine, even doing better than a lot of the men he knew.

"That guy is an idiot and she shouldn't let him get to her."

"You try telling her that, she hasn't really spoken to me since we got home." Al said with a small frown.

"I'll go and talk to her."

"No brother wait, maybe she will cheer up during dinner."

She did not cheer up during dinner like Al had expected. She simply sat at the table and pushed her food around her plate, keeping her head ducked down and she stayed silent throughout the meal. Her attitude was really getting on Ed's nerves. He didn't like how depressing she was being, just seeing her made him want to curl up into a ball and sit in the corner by himself, she looked that upset. They all cleaned up after dinner for the most part in silence, Al would occasionally bring up something to try and start a conversation, but it would quickly come to an Ed.

"I think I'm gonna go to turn in early tonight." Said Cecelia after everything was cleaned up.

She turned on her heel and began to walk towards her make shift bed, but was stopped when a hand latched onto her arm. Looking back, she scowled at Ed who returned the look, but with less malice than what she had.

"That man is wrong Cecelia-" He started, but was interrupted.

"What are you talking about?"

"Just listen; women do belong in the work force. I know a lot of very successful women who have gone through hell to get where they are today and they are still pushing forward. So just because some idiot says something dumb and bashes on your project, doesn't mean that you're a bad author and artist."

Hesitantly, he reached up and patted her head, a rare treat he enjoyed back in his state alchemist days.

"It just means that he's blind, so keep your head up and keep trying."

Ed couldn't help but grin when a small smile broke out on her stoic features. She pulled him in for a quick hug and scurried off towards the bathroom, but not before stealing one more hug from the stunned blond. He wasn't expecting that sort of reaction and his cheeks had a tint of red on them. She slipped inside the bathroom, but a few moments later she poked her head out and offered a petite smile.

"Thanks Ed."

She pulled her head back into the bathroom and shut the door. Ed and Al stood there, unsure of what they should do next.

"Well…at least you cheered her up Ed."

"Yeah, I guess I did."

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><p>See you all in the next chapter and I appreciate the reviews!<p> 


	10. Chapter 10

Open Up

Okay, so I've been doing a pretty crummy job at updating twice a week like I told myself I would so I gave myself a writing boost. I re watched Brotherhood and it has really gotten me back into my writing mood and it's really nice. Anyway I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and please read and review. COUGH

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>November merged into December and things weren't getting any better for Cecelia. After four more interviews since her first one, she still hadn't gotten the green light for her book to be published. She promised herself that she wouldn't get so upset like she did after the first interview, but it was getting tough to stay positive after receiving such negative feedback from each of her interviewers. Ed and Al continued to reassure her and it was definitely encouraging, but the lack of progress was frustrating for the young author and she slowly began losing hope.<p>

"Come on Cecelia don't look so glum," pleaded Al with a bright smile, "I've got something that will cheer you up."

Sighing, she rose from the couch and rested her hands on her hips. Al went over to the coat rack and grabbed her coat, tossing her hers before pulling on his own.

"Al I don't wanna, its cold outside." she whined.

"Oh pish posh, Christmas is coming up and we need to go shopping. Now is the perfect time because Ed isn't here."

"But Al, I don't feel like going outside."

"You have to come with me, I don't want to go by myself and you could exercise." He said, pulling her off of the couch.

Feigning shock and anger, she dramatically brought the back of her hand to her forehead.

"Are you calling me fat Alphonse?"

"W-what? No I didn't mean it like that; I was just s-saying-"he stammered.

"Calm down Al," she interrupted, waving her hand in dismissal, "I was just kidding."

Cecelia shrugged on her jacket and buttoned herself in, pulling her gloves out of her pocket and slipping those on as well. She fished around her suitcase for awhile until she found her bill fold, stashing it away in her pocket before following Al out the door.

"So hot stuff, where we go first?" she asked after they arrived in the shopping district.

His cheeks flushed. "You know I don't like it when you call me that, but I know I want to get Winry a new bandana and there is a small little boutique coming up."

"Alright lead the way sexy britches."

For good measure she swatted his butt. With a yelp, he jumped and glared at the laughing young woman.

"Cecelia, cut it out!"

Cecelia and Alphonse spent the afternoon shopping and to Al's chagrin, Cecelia did not let up on her banter. Her defense was that it was cheering her up and that was partially why he'd brought her along in the first place. At sometimes he sincerely regretted bringing her, but in the end she did help him narrow down his gifts. For Ed, Al got him a book on the elements, for Winry he bought bandanas in numerous colors and for Pinako he got a pipe crafted from cherry wood. Cecelia bought Edward a navy blue sweater and an herbal tea. When Al questioned her about the tea, she said it would help Ed grow.

"Are you ready to head back Cecelia?" Al asked.

"I only need to make one more stop, take me to the closest tool shop lady killer."

She reared her hand back to smack his butt again, but he scooted out of the way just in time.

"Cecelia," he whined, "stop smacking my butt, it's really embarrassing."

"But Al I can't help it, your butt is just that delectable."

A few of the pedestrians passing by chuckled at the scene taking place and Al ducked his head down to hide his beet red cheeks. He latched onto her arm and dragged her off towards the tool shop with Cecelia laughing the entire way there. Al led into the tool shop and trailed after her when she began making her way through the aisles. Shelves were stocked to the brim with glistening tools and to him they were all the same, but Cecelia seemed to catch something that he wasn't. She would lean in and squint at a particular tool before going on to the next and after awhile she huffed and faced Al.

"I think I need to go home to Rush Valley." She said.

"W-what, why are you going home Cecelia, if it's about me snapping at you earlier than I'm sorry and I didn't mean it?"

"No no no, it's not like that at all Al, I can't find the gift I want to give to the Winry and Pinako and I know it will be in Rush Valley. And after looking at all this stuff, it made me realize that I miss my family and that I should be with them for the holidays."

Al sighed in relief, but he couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy at the mention of her family. Sure he had his brother and the Rockbells to spend Christmas with, but spending the holidays with one's parents is something special and an experience he hadn't had since he was an infant and he couldn't even remember it occurring. He was a baby after all.

Cecelia's brow tweaked up when she noticed Al's expression fall. It was slight, but it still caught her eye. She smirked and patted his shoulder.

"You know Al, I bet you and Ed could come with me for the holidays." She offered.

"Oh no, we couldn't do that. We'll probably go and spend it with Winry and them."

"Duh, how could I forget about them?" she lightly smacked her head. "I'll invite them too."

Before Al could protest once more, she'd already spun on her heel and marched out of the tool shop, swinging her shopping bag as she went. He hurried after her and easily matched her pace. Instead of fighting her on her decision, he merely stuffed his hands in his pockets and smiled. _Maybe spending the holidays somewhere new will be nice… _

Edward was surprised to find his apartment surprisingly empty when he arrived earlier than he'd expected to. His mentor let him head home earlier than usual and instead of seeing Cecelia sprawled out on the couch and chatting with Al like he would on any other day, he was greeted by silence. He hung up his coat, kicked off his boots and wandered around the apartment, poking his head into every room in search for his brother and his surprisingly pleasant tormentor.

"Where in the hell did they go?"

He collapsed on the couch and sighed, blowing stray pieces of hair that fell into his face out of the way. _I haven't been by myself in awhile…what am I supposed to do? _ Getting off the couch, he went to the book shelf and pulled off the first book he could find. He seated himself at the dining room table, opened up the book and began to read, but after skimming a few paragraphs he slumped over onto the table and groaned.

"This sucks, there is nothing to-"

The front door swung open and Cecelia and Al made their entrance.

"Honey I'm home." Cecelia yelled, going straight to her suitcase and stuffing a bag in there.

Al had a few bags of his own and went back to his room to stow them away before coming back and sitting by his brother. Cecelia hung up her coat and pointed at Ed.

"I need to use your phone."

"Cecelia, why can't you go use a public phone? You're costing me a…hey." He snapped.

She was already at the phone and speaking to the operator. When Ed began to reprimand her, she waved her hand in his direction and shushed him.

"Be quiet, I'm on the phone." She said with a small wink before turning her back to him.

Cecelia waited for a few moments and grinned when she heard Winry's voice asking who was calling.

"Her girly it's me Cecelia. Listen I've got a question for you." She

"Oh my gosh, I haven't heard from you all in awhile. How have you all been, Ed hadn't been giving you trouble has he because I'll take care of him if I need to."

Cecelia laughed and shook her head.

"No Ed's been fine and I can handle him if he's acting like a troll, but that's not why I called. How would you and Pinako feel about coming to Rush Valley and staying with my family for the holidays?"

"Whoa, you don't mean that do you?"

"I wouldn't be asking if I wasn't being serious and besides, you all let me stay with you for a solid two weeks. It's the least I could do."

"But I mean, have you asked your parents or anything?"

"Um uh….well no."

"Cecelia, we can't just show up like that." said Winry.

"Sure you can, my brothers bring their wives and stuff all the time, so it'll be okay."

"That's not the same though."

"Winry, just go ask Pinako and I'll take care of everything else."

Cecelia turned to face Ed and Al who both had curious looks on their faces. She shrugged and held the phone away from her ear.

"She's talking to Pianko right now."

"Are your parents really going to be okay with us going with you to your house? I really don't want to impose." said Al.

"Seriously guys, it's going to be okay. My parents have always been telling me that I should really start bringing a man home and I'm going to make their wishes come true and bring two."

"Cecelia, that's not the same." said Ed with a small smile.

"Whatever, it's the same thing to me." Cecelia turned and faced the wall again.

She waited for a few minutes more before Winry returned.

"She said that it would be okay for me to go, but she said she didn't want to go. Rush Valley is too noisy for her, what with all the automail mechanics and…all of those beautiful parts…hand crafted to perfection…ohhhh."

"Okay Winry, okay. Don't pass out on me, you can go to town on the automail stuff when we get there, but how soon do you think you can get to Central or do you want us to meet you in Rush Valley?" Cecelia asked.

"Hmm, it probably isn't a good idea to travel separately because who knows when both trains arrive… I'll be in Central by tomorrow afternoon."

"Excellent and we will be waiting for you at the train station, I can't wait to see you Winry and we'll head to Rush Valley in two days time.

"Airght, well I've got an order to work on so I'll talk to you later and I'll see you tomorrow."

Cecelia hung up the phone and went over to the dining room table and placed her hands on the table. She leaned in and grinned.

"Boys, we're going to Rush Valley!"

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><p>That's chapter 10 for you guys and I hope you all liked it and I encourage you guys to review because it really helps me out. Anyway, I plan on having the next chapter out by Wednesday or Thursday, so stay tuned for that and I'd really like to thank everyone who's been reading regularly. You're awesome :3 See you all in chapter 11!<p> 


	11. Chapter 11

Open Up

Woohoo, we get to meet Cecelia's family. Sorry if this chapter isn't very exciting, but I promise that the next one will be a lot more interesting. I'd like to thank **Your Royal Freshness **and especially **KuramaMustangElric** for reading and reviewing. It was very encouraging and you guys are the best! I hope everyone enjoys.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia and her family.

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><p>Winry had to restrain herself from bouncing in her seat as their train neared Rush Valley. She'd arrived in Central the night before and caught up with everything else and earlier today around lunch time they all boarded the train to begin their trip to Rush Valley. They spent most of their time chatting or playing cards, but it got a little old when Ed continued to win, although it was later revealed by Cecelia that he'd been cheating. As the ride went on, Ed, Al and Cecelia all fell asleep for a nap and out of all of them Cecelia looked the most comfortable. Her head was slumped against Al's arm while her feet were propped up on Ed's lap. Winry was actually surprised that Ed left her feet there, but he didn't say anything about it before he fell asleep. With a sigh, she looked out the window and smiled when she noticed a large town in the horizon that only got bigger as they got closer.<p>

"Hey guys wake up, we're almost in Rush Valley." She said, leaning forward to shake Al's knee.

After a bit more prodding, Al woke up and he in turn woke up Cecelia who woke up Ed by poking him in the gut with her foot. When Ed came to, he chuckled at the sight of the brunette across from him. The left side of her hair was mussed from Al's arm. Cecelia stuck her tongue out at him before fixing her hair and pulling her feet off him. The four of them got situated and by the time they collected all of their baggage, the train was pulling into the station. Cecelia led them off the train and onto the train platform.

"Okay everyone follow me, my house is a ten minute walk from here so it won't take us too long."

"Let's get a move on then," Ed patted his stomach, "I'm starving."

"But you ate on the train." said Cecelia

"Crummy train food doesn't fill me up."

"You're going to get fat."

"Shut up."

Cecelia merely shrugged before beginning towards her house. Winry stepped in line with her and began discussing the Wheelright tool company with her, Cecelia answering the mechanics the best she could, but they did little to satisfy Winry's question. The family business wasn't really in Cecelia's interests. The Elric brothers trailed behind the chatting young women in silence, the only thing on their minds was a warm house and a warm meal, after walking for a few minutes more the boys were surprised with what they saw. Instead of some ridiculously large mansion, they were greeted by a cozy; but larger than average, white house with red shutters and puffs of smoke popped out of the chimney. Cecelia went straight up to the red painted door, set down her suitcase and opened the door.

"Smallfry!" she called.

Ed, Al and Winry watched her skeptically as they heard a loud scampering noise coming from the house. Cecelia repeated the name until a large St. Bernard appeared at the end of the hall. The dog paused for a moment, taking in the sight of one of its owners before running over. Cecelia squatted slightly and held out her arms to embrace the family pet, but scowled when the dog dashed past her. Next thing she knew, Ed was on the ground with Smallfry sitting on his chest, licking the blond who desperately tried to get out from under the large dog. She laughed before reaching down and pulling on the dog's collar. Ed jumped up and brushed himself off all the while glaring at the dog.

"Good boy Smallfry," she gave him a good scratch behind the ears before picking up her luggage and heading inside, "come on you guys."

The Resembool trio all trudged behind her, taking off their shoes at the entry way and followed Cecelia to the foyer. They all took in the surroundings of the new environment. Pictures lined the buttercup yellow walls and a large set of stairs led to a second floor.

"Cecelia sweetheart, what took you so long?" asked a voice from the top of the stairs.

An older woman made her way down to the group and pulled Cecelia into a tight embrace, cooing about how much she'd missed her daughter.

"Mama cut it out, there are guests." pleaded Cecelia, squirming to release herself from her mother's clutches.

The woman turned to the three of them and smiled. She released her daughter and bowed slightly to them.

"It's a pleasure to meet you three, my name is Melissa Wheelright, but Lisa will do just fine."

Ed, Al and Winry introduced themselves respectively.

"Cecelia, take them up to the third floor, those rooms are still open, but you boys may have to share a room."

"That's alright Mrs. Wheelright, thank you for letting us stay in your home." said Al politely.

"You are absolutely darling," she reached forward and pinched his cheeks, "but please call me Lisa. You all get situated and then wash up for dinner, I bet your staving."

She spun on her heel and left the young adults alone. Cecelia grabbed her stuff and made her way up the stairs, dropping her suitcase off at a door on the second floor before taking them up to the third.

"I can see where Cecelia gets her touchy feely attributes from." Al whispered to his brother while pointing at his inflamed cheeks.

"I heard that."

Dinner time came along and it took a bit of rearranging to fit everyone around the dinner table. Cecelia sat in between Ed and Al while Winry took a seat next to Al. Cecelia's parents were sitting at opposite ends of the table, taking the head seats while Cecelia's brothers took the rest of the available spots.

"Boys," said Lisa to her sons after all the food was passed around the table, "why don't you introduce yourselves to our guests."

A man in his early thirties nodded before waving his hand to bring everyone's attention to him.

"Well, I'm Ashton the oldest and this is my wife Helen," he gestured to the blond woman to his left, "and I have two daughters named Sara and Leah, but they're up in their rooms. They already ate."

The next brother began his introduction.

"I'm Samuel…I'm the second oldest and my girlfriend couldn't make it but her name is Grace…I don't really have anything else to say."

And finally the last brother introduced himself.

"I'm the youngest out of the boys and my name is Hunter."

All three of them looked at Ed and Al expectantly, waiting to hear who their guests were. Cecelia elbowed Ed. He coughed down his food and patted his chest before beginning.

"I'm Edward Elric, this is my younger brother Alphonse and our childhood friend Winry Rockbell."

"I recognize that name," said Hunter, waving his fork in Ed's direction, "you're the FullMetal Alchemist aren't you? I remember you causing a ruckus when those foreigners were here."

Ed bashfully looked down at his plate, remembering his first encounter with Lan Fan. "I _was_ the FullMetal Alchemist; I've retired from the military."

"And your brother, everyone said that you always wore that suit of armor. I remember seeing you around town while you were here." said Hunter.

"Umm yes, I wore it for Alchemy training." Al replied quietly, stealing a glance at Ed who shoveled food in his mouth with hopes of moving the conversation off of them.

Cecelia noticed the Elric's discomfort and turned towards her father.

"Dad, now that everyone is here, do you think we could play Keepers tomorrow?" she asked.

Chester Wheelright eyed his youngest and only daughter and sighed. He knew how rough his children could get when they played Keepers and he didn't think it very appropriate for their guests. Just as he'd begun to protest, Cecelia shot him her best puppy dog eyes. _That brat, she knows I can't resist those._

"That's fine, but I don't want it to get out of hand." He said after awhile.

"What's Keepers?" asked Winry.

"We split up into teams and each team has a goal post and we have to get the ball into the other team's post." explained Cecelia.

"Well that doesn't sound hard at all." Ed said after finishing off the food on his plate.

"It may sound easy, but it gets pretty intense. You're allowed to tackle your opponent and wrestle for the ball. I remember one year when we played, Cecelia accidentally elbowed Hunter in the nose and fractured It." said Ashton with a light chuckle.

"Oh yeah, I remember that," grumbled Hunter while rubbing his nose before looking at Ed, Al and Winry, "I'm just going to warn you three now. Cecelia plays dirty."

Cecelia scoffed and shook her head. "I don't play dirty, I just play to win."

Ed looked at her out of the corner of his eye, taking in the determined looked that took over her facial features. He smiled lightly, but quickly replaced it with a smirk.

"I think I can handle you." he said confidently.

"Oh ho," she leaned in and returned his smirk with one of her own, "well then you're on Elric."

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><p>I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. And Keepers is more or less an intense version of football if anyone was curious. Any who, I hope everyone reads and reviews and I will see you guys in chapter 12.<p> 


	12. Chapter 12

Open Up

How exciting, I got this up the next day! When I got home all I could think about was writing this chapter so I got it done and I hope you all like it. Well thank you to everyone who has been reading and has reviewed, I love you guys and feel free to leave more reviews. HA! Enjoy the story.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia and her family.

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><p>Early the next morning the Wheelright children were up and moving, preparing themselves as well as their guests for their game of Keepers. Samuel and Ashton went out back to set up the field while Cecelia and Hunter gave Ed, Al and Winry appropriate clothing which consisted of ragged long sleeved shirts and jeans covered with holes and stains.<p>

"You guys get changed and I will meet you downstairs so I can teach you how to play." said Cecelia before dismissing herself.

Ed eyed the clothes he was given and made his way to his temporary room. When the door was shut, he stripped out of his red sweater and black pants and changed into Hunter's spare clothes. He met Al and Winry out in the hallway and led them down the stairs to where Cecelia stood, hands on her hips.

"So what exactly is Keepers again? I didn't really understand the explanation from dinner." said Winry as the four of them pulled on their shoes.

"We're going to do a practice round so that you guys can see how it works, so the sooner we get outside then the sooner we can get started." Cecelia replied with a grin.

Ed stuffed his hands in his pockets and followed behind the brunette as she directed them through the house and out the backdoor. He managed to jump out of the way when Smallfry tried to pounce on him again; he'd gotten a good amount of 'avoid large dog' practice in his lifetime. The four walked for a bit longer until they arrived at a relatively large field with two circular goal posts on opposite sides. Cecelia joined her brothers and they split up into teams of two. Samuel and Cecelia were on one side while Ashton and Hunter went to the other. Ed plopped down onto the grass and watched while everything got situated.

"Okay you guys watch," called Cecelia from her side of the field, "Hunter is gonna kick the ball over to us and we're just going to try and get it in his goal, but they're allowed to steal the ball."

"That doesn't sound hard." replied Ed, scowling when he heard her laughing.

"Just you wait and see."

Ed watched the game get started with Sam kicking off the ball. Cecelia scooted back far enough so that the ball would land right in her arms and then she took off running towards the goal. In a matter of seconds, both teams collided in the middle of the field. With Sam's help Cecelia managed to dodge Hunter after he dived at her, but she couldn't say the same about Ashton. He rammed against her with enough force to knock her on her back. Ed couldn't help but wince for her sake because it looked like it hurt. Ashton reached down and tried wrenching the ball from her grasp, but Cecelia held on tight, kicking at her oldest brother until Sam came to the rescue. He snatched the ball out of her hands and started running for the goal again. Cecelia pulled herself up from the ground and chased after her team member, making sure to ram her shoulder against Hunter as she passed him. Ed and Al let out a small cheer after she made the hit, impressed that someone so small could knock someone down with so much vigor. With no one to stop him, Sam tossed the ball through the goal and gave Cecelia a high five. Ed stood to his feet just as Cecelia joined them. She was panting and there was dirt on the back of her sweatshirt.

"See it's not too hard right?" she asked with a smile.

"You're joking right? That looked vicious; Ashton just knocked you down without a second thought. I don't think I really want to play." Winry said.

"Oh fine you party pooper, you can be my team's cheerleader."

"I have dibs on Ed!" yelled Hunter from his spot on the field.

A smirk made its way onto Ed's face and he eyed Cecelia. He made his way down to his team but stopped just as he was about to pass him. She looked up at him expectantly with her hands across her chest.

"You may have the advantage of playing this game longer, but I'm not going to hold anything back." he declared.

She chuckled and grabbed Al's hand. Cecelia started trudging towards Sam and called back to Ed, "Good, that's what I want to hear and I won't hold anything back either."

Ed's body was aching. Keepers was a lot harder than he'd originally thought. They'd been playing for a good solid two hours and he was wiped out. Al and Cecelia always managed to double team him when he got the ball. Cecelia would get at his legs to trip him up while Al ran into his side to knock him over. But that's not to say his team wasn't doing a good job, Ashton and Hunter showed no mercy to their younger sister. They would tackle her and shove her to the dirt just to get the ball and while he knew Cecelia was okay with it, watching them push her down made him slightly uncomfortable.

"Okay everyone, this is the last round. Whoever scores wins the game." announced Ashton.

Ed joined his teammates and waited until Sam kicked the ball off to them. It landed in Hunter's arms. Ed moved to block off the other team, lightly pushing Al to move him out of his way as Hunter made his way to the goal. But while he was messing with Al, he didn't notice Cecelia slip past him and she was heading straight for Hunter.

"Dammit." He grumbled.

He tried catching the small brunette, by the time he'd reached her she was already sliding along the grass and ramming right into Hunter's legs which caused him to tumble to the dirt. She scrambled to her feet and stole the ball from Hunter's arm, ignoring his protests as she did and dashed towards their goal. Ed cursed again, spun on his heel and chased after her.

"Come on Ed you've got to get her!" cried Ashton who was blocking Al from Cecelia.

Ed pushed himself harder and soon he was hot on her heels. He heard her yelp in surprise from his close vicinity, but it didn't stop her. He had to act quickly or his team was going to lose. Sticking out his arms, he waited until he was close enough to wrap them around her waist. As soon as he had her in his grasp, he jerked her back but at the same time he lost his footing. With a grunt, he landed on his back but he kept his old on the now writhing Cecelia.

"Cecelia toss it up." demanded Sam.

She did as he said and threw it up as high as she could from her the ground. He snatched it from the air and continued towards their goal. Ed sat up and because he was still holding onto Cecelia, brought her up with him. She was cheering her brother on from his lap and he was desperately looking around for a team member to stop Sam, but by the time Hunter caught up with Sam, the ball was flying through the goal. He groaned, hoping to overpower the sounds of Sam, Al and Cecelia's cheering.

"Alright lover boy," said Hunter, "the game is over so you can get your paws off my sister."

A deep cherry red blushed appeared on Ed and Cecelia's faces. She scrambled off of him and brushed herself off. He hopped up to his feet and awkwardly faced Hunter and Ashton who wore matching smirks.

"I'm uhhh….gonna see what Winry's doing." mumbled Cecelia before scurrying off into the house.

Ed's eyes followed her as she ran up the field and burst into the house before turning his direction to Al who had just joined him at his side. He laughed at the sight of his younger brother, he was covered from head to toe in dirt and his hair was askew, but Ed doubted that he looked any better. The men all stayed around to clean up, but with all five of them they were done in about ten minutes. When everything was cleaned up they all made their way inside.

The brothers did their best to wipe off most of the grime that had stuck to them before they entered the house, but Lisa dismissed their efforts and told them to hurry on upstairs and to get cleaned up. They hurried up the stairs to the third floor and Ed went straight to the bathroom after asking Al if it was okay for him to shower first. He peeled off his dirty clothes, messed with the shower dial until the water's temperature was to his standards and stepped inside, groaning in delight when the hot water collided with his back. He rinsed the dirt out of his hair and scrubbed his body clean. When he was rid of any dirt, he turned the shower off and stepped out onto the cold tile floor. He grabbed a fluffy white towel and rung his hair out with it before wrapping it around his waist. Just as he secured his towel, the door flung open. Cecelia stood there with a stack of towels in her hand and her eyes wide open from the sight before her.

"I-I-I, oh jeez sorry! I was just gonna bring in towels because my mom told me to and I thought you would s-still be in the shower so that I could just slip right in and set them down, but I guess I didn't hear that the shower was off and I w-welll…." she rambled on and bashfully looked down at her bare feet, all the while her face became a bright red with embarrassment.

"Umm…thanks…I'll just take the towels."

She handed off the towels to him and practically sprinted out of the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. Although he was pretty embarrassed himself, he couldn't help but laugh at the situation and how the super confident Cecelia was stumbling over her words. Poking his head out to make sure the coast was clear, he entered the hall way and went to his room. He changed back into his red sweater and black pants and then made his way downstairs to interact with the Wheelrights.

The rest of the day was spent relaxing with everyone in the family room. Cecelia's brothers spared nothing from the Ed and told every embarrassing story that they could. Even her parents joined in on teasing their daughter. Ed and Al shared a glance, both of them having the same thought. Even though they could never have an experience like this because their parents were gone, it was still pleasant getting to be a part of this family's quality time together.

After dinner he dismissed himself to his room. Keepers really took a lot out of him and he wanted to rest a little bit. He went upstairs to his room, unaware that Cecelia was following him up; only until they were in his room did he realize that she was there.

"Can I help you with something?" he asked, taking a seat at the foot of the bed.

"Ed what happened to you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Your shoulder, there was that big scar on that right shoulder." she said, unusually serious.

His eyes hardened and he looked away from her. He felt the bed sink a little as she took a seat, but he couldn't look her in the eye. He'd been hoping to avoid having to explain his story to Cecelia, not because he wanted to keep her in the dark but because he wasn't ready.

"Ed please tell me, I don't know anything about you and Al… I know you two have this unspoken vow to keep quiet about your childhood and I can tell that it still tears you up inside… I want to be able to help you."

His hands tightened into fists and his eyes clamped shut. Sucking in a deep breath, he held the air in for a long moment before slowly releasing it in a steady stream. His body relaxed and he looked at her, placing his hand on her knee.

"Cecelia I'm sorry… I'll tell you one day, but I just can't right now."

She smiled softly and nodded, getting up off his bed.

"I understand, but I'm holding you to that."

"I wouldn't expect anything else." he said, standing on his feet to face her properly.

He stared at her for a moment to take her in. Instead of the usual funny faces that she made, she looked soft and serene and the way the moon shone through the window made her hazel eyes light up. While he was stuck in his sort of trance, Cecelia stood on her toes and placed a light kiss on his cheek before walking away towards the door. Ed lifted his hand and rested against his cheek where her lips just were. She held the door open and looked back at him with a smile.

"Goodnight Ed and if you tell anyone that I just did that, then I will hurt you."

With that said, she left him alone and shut the door behind her. Falling onto his bed, he sighed and stared up at the ceiling, his hands folded on his lap.

"Cecelia Wheelright," he started, "what am I going to do with you?"

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><p>YAY CHAPTER 12! I hope everyone liked it and that you guys continue reading. Feel free to drop a review and I will see you all in the next chapter.<p> 


	13. Chapter 13

Open Up

I'm just warning everyone now. **_THIS CHAPTER IS A FILLER_**. I didn't want to go straight into the good stuff so I had to break it up with this chapter, but this one still has a little laugh in the middle. Thanks to everyone who has been reading and reviewing this story and I definitely hope you all continue to do so.

Typical disclaimer: I do not own FMA but I do own Cecelia and her family.

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><p>As Christmas day came closer and closer, things in the Wheelright house hold were growing hectic. Lisa spent most of the day ordering her children and guests to do certain decoration tasks. Cecelia and Winry were in charge of making wreaths while the boys were supposed to pick out the perfect tree. Although progress was being made on decorating, a few things happened to go wrong. Ashton's daughter Leah spilled glue on two of the wreaths and while Hunter and Ed were rough housing in the kitchen, they knocked over a stack of cookie trays. With Christmas a week away, Mrs. Wheelright was fed up with the young adults running around her house and making a mess of things. So she kicked everyone out of the house for the day.<p>

"Damn mom is being super cranky today." said Hunter after everyone gathered outside.

"It's your fault you idiot, you knocked over the stupid cookie trays." scolded Cecelia.

"Ed did it too!"

"I've already yelled at him."

"This is a good opportunity to get last minute shopping done, so let's take advantage of it." Al said optimistically.

The girls decided to split up from the boys and shop on their own. Winry and Cecelia enjoyed the bonding time they were able to spend with each other and the blond was able to get all of her shopping done. She got her grandmother a new book and for Ed and Al she got them both hats. She also got something for Cecelia, but the mechanic wouldn't budge and show her the present, much to Cecelia's annoyance. Around lunch time, the two stopped to grab a bite to eat at a small sandwich shop. After their food was ordered, they both took a seat at one of the empty booths.

"So Winry, how's the love life been going for you?" asked Cecelia out of the blue, nearly causing Winry to spew her water across the table.

"That's quite the question, ummm," she blushed and looked away, "I don't really have a love life."

"You're kidding me right? But you're so gorgeous and you have a fantastic personality."

"Psh, half of the time I'm wearing a grease covered work suit." said Winry with a laugh.

"But you make it look good, come on there has to be someone you've dated."

"Why do you want to know so bad?"

"This is what girls do when they go out for lunch. They talk about boys and I'm trying to fulfill the stereotype.

"That's a stereotype for _teenage _girls Cecelia. We're twenty year old women."

"Oh shut up and stop avoiding my question."

Winry huffed and began twirling the ends of her hair in between her fingers.

"I…dated Ed for awhile."

Cecelia sat there quite baffled. She'd never put the two together, but the more she thought about it the more it made sense. Winry and Ed had been childhood friends after all.

"Well what happened with that?" she asked after their sandwiches had arrived.

"I don't know. It was all really weird… It was supposed to be perfect because we'd been friends for so long, but it was just uncomfortable for the both of us."

"I guess that's a bummer."

"I didn't cry or anything. We both mutually decided to call it off because it was the right thing to do. All Ed and I can ever be is friends and besides, he's too short for me."

They both paused to laugh and ate some of their food.

"What about you Cecelia? Have you ever had a boyfriend?"

"Does Smallfry count?"

"No your dog does not count as a boyfriend." said Winry.

"Then no, I have never had a boyfriend."

The girls finished up their lunch and continued with their shopping. Cecelia bought things for her siblings as well as a gift for Alphonse. By the time they arrived back at the house, the sun was beginning to set. Cecelia lugged her bags up to her bedroom and tossed them in without a care. _It's not like clothes will break if I throw them. _

"What was that?"

Cecelia jumped in surprise and spun, scowling when she realized it was only Ed.

"Thanks for scaring me out of my wits," she slammed her door shut, "and it's none of your business."

"Come on Cecelia, I just want a little peek." he said while trying to squeeze around her.

"No you troll; you're just going to have to wait until later to see it."

Ed sighed, but decided to drop it. Cecelia stuck her tongue out at him before leaving him and going downstairs. Her mother caught her at the bottom of the stairs and had her rearrange ornaments so they would be easier to deal with when it came time to put the tree up.

"What are you doing Cecelia?" asked Al when he entered the family room.

"Sorting stuff."

Al chuckled and took a seat beside her. He decided not to assist her because it seemed that Cecelia had some system of organization and he didn't want to disrupt or organizing flow.

"How was your shopping Al? Find what you needed?" she asked.

"Actually I did do some last minute shopping. Also, it was nice to get to hang out with your brothers. They're very interesting."

"Oh really? What did you guys do?"

Cecelia and Al chatted about their days until she was done dealing with the ornaments. As the day simmered to a close, Cecelia giddily lay in bed, thinking about Christmas. She loved giving presents almost as much as she loved to receive them and with her new friends spending the holiday with her, she was more than excited to bestow gifts onto them.

"This is going to be the best Christmas ever."

With that said, she let her eyes flutter shut and sleep take her away.

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><p>I apologize for a not exciting chapter, but I promise that the next one will be good because it's a CHRISTMAS PARTY! See you guys then!<p> 


	14. Chapter 14

Open Up

Oh boy, the Christmas chapter! I hope everyone enjoys this chapter and I want to thank everyone who has been reading and leaving reviews. I really appreciate them. Wellllll enjoy this chapter!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>It was Christmas morning and everyone in the house was up and eagerly waiting by the tree to open presents. Everyone except for Ed. Cecelia happily volunteered herself to wake him up and brought Al along with her. They both quietly tiptoed up the stairs and across the hall to Ed's room. Before she could slip inside, Al caught her arm.<p>

"Don't go too crazy, it is Christmas after all." he said.

"Oh please, have I ever done anything too crazy?"

"Yes."

Cecelia scowled and shooed him away, but he stayed put. She rolled her eyes and as quietly as she could, opened the door and entered Ed's room. Squinting a bit, she navigated through the dark room until she brushed against the bed frame. She smirked to herself, climbed onto the bed and started jumping up and down like a crazed animal, yelling 'Wake up, it's time for presents!' She kept this up until his hand latched on to her ankle and gave a sharp tug, making her lose her footing and fall back onto the bed. She erupted in a fit of giggles when Ed sat up, looking very displeased and disheveled. His usually maintained golden hair was sticking up in every direction and he was frowning.

"What do you want?" he grumbled.

"It's time to open presents, so get your fat butt up."

Christmas morning wasn't registering in Ed's head because he only looked at her, puzzled.

"What are you talking about?"

She sat up and crossed her legs.

"Its Christmas morning and everyone is waiting for you to get up so we can open presents, duh!"

Cecelia rolled off the bed and grabbed Ed's hand, pulling until he got out of bed. She led him out of his room and they both greeted Al.

"Thank goodness you made it out unscathed Cecelia, brother does not like getting woken up in this early in the morning." he said with a smile.

"I could take Ed on any day."

Al simply shrugged and made his way down the stairs with Ed and Cecelia right behind them. They all went straight to the family room, but the latter stopped in the doorframe when Cecelia's family started to hoot and holler.

"What are you guys yelling for?" she snapped.

Hunter grinned and pointed up. Ed and Cecelia looked up and were greeted by a small piece of greenery dangling above them. In a matter of seconds, their cheeks became a bright red and Cecelia huffed, stubbornly crossing her arms over her chest.

"No way no how, I am not kissing him. I would rather kiss Smallfry."

"You have to Cecelia; it's a tradition." teased Winry."

"But I don't want to kiss her, that's embarrassing." Ed whined.

Cecelia shot him a look, "Oh so you're saying I'm embarrassing?"

"What no, that's not what I said."

Yes you did, you said it would be embarrassing to kiss me you-"

"Just kiss already so we can open presents." interrupted Samuel.

Gulping down her nerves, Cecelia leaned over and planted a tiny kiss on his shoulder. She triumphantly marched into the living room and took a seat next to her youngest niece while Ed joined Al. Cecelia's brothers protested with the lack of a show and in turn Cecelia replied with 'You didn't say I had to kiss his lips.' Then she proceeded to accuse her brothers of being closet perverts. It took Lisa a bit to calm her children down, but she managed to do so and had Ashton's daughters pass out presents to everyone. Ed and Al were chatting about the holiday, but were silenced when Ashton's youngest daughter Leah came up to them with two presents in her hands.

"You're Ed and Al right?" she asked quietly.

"Umm yeah we are." Ed replied.

Leah set down the two presents in front of them before scurrying off to the tree to pass out more presents. Ed leaned forward to check the tags and to his surprise they were addressed to him and his brother. They were from Cecelia's brothers. When all of the presents were passed out, Ed and Al accumulated a small pile of gifts. The brother's were touched; Cecelia's parents gave them gifts as well as her brothers.

"I feel bad, we didn't get anything for Cecelia's family but they got gifts for us." whispered Al.

"Yeah, we'll have to go into town and get something before we leave."

As soon as Lisa gave the okay, everyone began tearing off wrapping paper and finding out what they had gotten for Christmas.

Cecelia received: A new dress from her parents, a set of foreign spices from her brother, a sixty for piece set of colored pencils from Al, a cookbook from Winry and a leather bound journal from Ed.

Winry received: A brand new set of tools from Cecelia and her parents. The brunette had to beg her father to let Winry have the tools for Christmas; they wouldn't be released to the public for at least another month. She got bandanas from Al, an automail book from Cecelia's brothers and a new carrying case from Ed.

Ed received: A Chemistry book from Cecelia's parents, a Keepers ball from Cecelia's brothers, a navy blue sweater from Cecelia, a photo of when they were boys from Al and a free check up on his leg from Winry.

Al received: A drawing pad from Cecelia's parents, a Keepers ball from her brothers, a stuffed kitten plush from Cecelia, a jacket from Winry and a book about Xing from Ed.

After everyone was finished opening up their presents, they all took their gifts up to their respective rooms and helped clean up all the wrapping paper in the living room. When the family room was back to normal, Cecelia plopped her butt down on the couch with Ed, Al and Winry following suit. She squirmed a bit, not liking being sandwiched between two men who were larger than her.

"Hey Cecelia," started Winry, "thank you for letting us come over here for the holidays, I'm sure that Ed and Al will agree with me, but I haven't had a Christmas like that in a long time."

Ed and Al nodded in agreement.

"You guys don't need to thank me, you're always welcome here and it's the least I could have done. You let me bum around with you guys when I'm in Central or Resembool and besides, you guys are my friends." said Cecelia just as Samuel called them all outside for a Christmas game of Keepers.

They all began making their way upstairs, but Cecelia stopped when Ed caught her by the arm. Facing him, she shot him a questioning look which was immediately replaced when he pulled her into a hug. Her cheeks blared red and she hesitantly wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head in the crook of his neck.

"Seriously Cecelia, thank you for letting us come with you, it was really nice to go get to spend a Christmas with a family again, even though it wasn't my own family." He mumbled.

He let her go and she was glad to see that she wasn't the only one who was a little embarrassed; his cheeks were tinted red too. Ed smiled at her before turning on his heel and going upstairs.

"You're welcome Ed…" she said when he was out of sight, placing her hand over her rapidly beating heart.

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><p>How cute. Well I will see you all in the next chapter!<p> 


	15. Chapter 15

Open Up

Hey everyone! This is the New Years chapter and I really liked writing it so I hope you all enjoy reading it.

Typical disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia and her family.

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><p>Winry groaned in frustration and collapsed on her bed which was covered with every article of clothing that she'd brought with her. It was New Years Eve and the Wheelrights were hosting their annual New Year's Eve party, but Cecelia forgot to mention that to her when she was packing so Winry didn't bring anything suitable to wear. Upon hearing her loud groan from down the hall, Cecelia poked her head in and frowned.<p>

"Winry what are you doing? We have to leave soon and you haven't started getting ready." she said, gesturing towards her head which was covered with pin curls.

"Well sorry Cecelia, but I don't have anything to wear."

Cecelia smirked, "I think I know just the person who can help you."

She left Winry alone for a few minutes and returned with Ashton's wife Helen in tow. The other woman looked a bit bewildered.

"Ummm did you need something Cecelia?" she asked in her pleasantly soft voice.

"Winry here didn't bring anything to wear for the party tonight,"

"Because you never told me there was going to be a formal event tonight!" she interrupted in her defense.

Ignoring her, Cecelia continued, "Anyway, she doesn't have anything to wear and I was hoping you could help. You're good with clothes and stuff so I was wondering if you could help us out."

"I would love to help, come with me and I'll see what I can do." said Helen, leading Winry out of her room and towards the room she was sharing with Ashton.

Cecelia crossed her arms over her chest and nodded, pleased with her work. _Who said I wasn't a good person?_ She thought before going back to the bathroom to finish working on her look for tonight. Just as she was about to start pulling out her pin curls, Winry burst into the bathroom with a dress in hand and a bright smile.

"Wow that was fast." she said.

"Your sister in law is a genius, she picked this dress out on her first try and it's absolutely perfect."

"That's fantastic, so what are you going to do with your hair?"

Winry's smile fell, "I haven't thought about that."

Cecelia laughed and gestured for Winry to shut the door.

"Alright, it's time for me to work some hair magic."

After spending the rest of the afternoon doing their hair and makeup, Winry and Cecelia were ready. Winry's hair was curled and bounced when she walked. Her dress was a royal blue and floor length and it hung in all the right places, accenting her curves but not in a drastic skin tight way. Her makeup was simple, a little bit of blush to bring out some color and a swipe of mascara for the eyes. Cecelia wore the dress her parents had given her for Christmas. It was a black dress sleeveless dress that stopped at her knees and it came with matching black gloves that went up to her elbows. She'd spend a lot of her time dealing with Winry's hair and she ran out of time to deal with hers. In a pinch, she pulled her hair up into a tight high bun, leaving her bangs down and wisps of hair that curled to frame her face. Her makeup was similar to Winry's and she finished the look off with black kitten heels.

"Hot damn, we look good." said Cecelia with a grin, turning to check herself out in different angles.

"Yeah, I've never felt this pretty before," gushed Winry, "thanks Cecelia."

"It was no problem at all, but let's head out because I have some dancing to do."

They met up with Helen and her two daughters downstairs and they all left together. The New Year's party was being held at the Wheelright's tool factory. The entire first floor was transformed into a ball room of sorts, there would be a band and lines of tables covered with food would line the walls. Guests would be able to dance or simply socialize. The men of the house had left around lunch time to take care of preparations and would meet up with the women when they arrived.

"Well look at you Sara, aren't you just the prettiest little lady ever?" teased Cecelia.

The girl blushed and looked away.

"What about me Aunt Cece?" asked Leah.

"Well you're pretty too."

"But am I the prettiest?"

"Uhhh…. Hey would you look at that, we're almost there." she said in a desperate attempt to draw the little girl's attention elsewhere and luckily for her, it worked.

"Nice save." whispered Winry.

The factory eventually came into view and the two younger women were beyond excited. Cecelia loved being able to dance around and have fun while Winry had never attended such a posh social event before. Cecelia scurried as fast as her little heeled feet would take her until she was standing in front of the door. She turned back to grin at her blond companion before pushing the doors open.

"Holy cow…"

Cecelia tugged Winry inside and let the Resembool native gawk.

"Everything is exactly like you said, food all over the place, great music and everyone sounds like they're having a great time. And the decorations look so chic, I love it."

"You'll have to thank my mother for the decorations; she plans it all out and has my brother do the dirty work."

The two young women chatted for awhile longer, Cecelia stopping midsentence when someone tapped her shoulder.

"Don't you two look lovely tonight." said a familiar voice.

Laughing, Cecelia turned around and came face to face with a smiling Alphonse.

"Goodness gracious don't you look sharp."

Al chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. He did look good though. He was wearing a white button up shirt with a scarlet red bow tie around his neck and to pair it off he wore nice black slacks and shiny black dress shoes. Cecelia could practically see her reflection on the surface of his shoes. His boyish charm only enhanced his look.

"You look very nice Alphonse, now where is that brother of yours?" Winry asked.

As if on cue, Ed appeared and Cecelia nearly choked on her own saliva. _And I thought Al looked good!_ The older Elric had on a simple ensemble. He wore a crisp white button up shirt with the top button undone and had on a black tie that was a little loose. He had on black pants and black shoes as well. His usually braided hair was in a simple pony tail. Cecelia gulped and almost had to physically stop herself from looking him over any longer for fear of getting caught. She didn't want a repeat of what happened on the train to Central.

"I'm right here," Ed answered, stuffing his hands into his pockets, "you two look good."

"Mhmm and you clean up pretty nicely Ed." said Cecelia after she cleared her throat.

"Hey, how did you two know to pack formal clothes?" asked Winry.

"I made sure that Ed and I packed something nice just in case we needed to look formal, thank goodness I did." explained Al.

"Okay you guys that is enough chit chat, it's time to dance."

"Damn Cecelia, how in the world can you last that long?" asked Ed when they'd finally found an open table.

Cecelia had dragged them off to the dance floor and it was obvious that she planned on dancing the night away. Ed was more than relieved when she announced that she was ready to take a break. But he enjoyed watching her have a good time. He liked the way she smiled when she laughed and the way her dress swooshed when she moved to the beat and the way her cheeks flushed. Ed was glad that his brother and childhood friend seemed to have a good time too, although they weren't as eccentric as Cecelia, they still danced around. When it was time for a break, Ed and Cecelia went to find a place to sit while Winry and Al collected food.

"What can I say? I have a talent for dancing." she said.

"I guess so, my foot is killing me and I didn't do that much."

"Oh shush, if anyone should be complaining it's me. I'm wearing- oh no."

Ed shot her a questioning look.

She began scooting her chair over until she was seated next to him and then pressed herself up against him.

"Put your arm around me." she hissed.

Ed laid his left arm across his shoulders just in time for Cecelia to let out a loud laugh.

"Oh darling, you are just too funny. I can't believe you said that to my father." she said, sending him a look that said 'if you don't play along then I will hurt you.'

Ed heard someone clear their throat and looked up. A man about his age stood there eyeing him and Cecelia with an obvious look of distaste. _Hmmm…this guy must know her_.

"Well if it isn't Stephen Gray, I haven't seen you in years," she started, letting her fingers twirl around strands of Ed's hair, "how have you been? Oh how rude of me, Edward darling, this is Stephen. He's a friend of mine from my childhood days."

Ed stuck out his free hand in a friendly gesture and could tell this Stephen guy was not pleased to see Cecelia with him when he shook his hand a little harder than any normal man would.

"Pleasure to meet you Edward, are you and Cecelia together?"

She laughed again and playfully swatted at his hand.

"Oh you're so funny, what a silly question. Ed and I have been together for over a year and a half. And it has been the best year and a half of my life." She said, adding a girlish squeal at the end.

"I see well congratulations to you then Cecelia. I just remembered, I have to go grab my mother something, I'll see you around."

Stephen excused himself and Cecelia dethatched himself from her partner when he was out of sight. She let out a sigh of relief.

"So what was that about?" he asked.

"That was Stephen Grey. We grew up together and he has it in his head that we are destined for love, but I will have none of it. He was fun when we were little, but as we grew, his ego did as well. Now I only really see him at this party and his advances get more and more aggressive each year, so if we see him again then you're my boyfriend."

"Rodger that."

Winry and Al arrived with plates of food and seated themselves, passing out plates to everyone. They all sat and relaxed, eating food whose names they couldn't pronounce. After throwing away their plates, Cecelia returned to the dance floor with Winry while Ed and Al sat down. The two chatted for maybe ten minutes before they were pulled to the dance floor by their female companions. As the night began to dwindle to a close, Cecelia's mother climbed up to where the band was to make announcement.

"Hello everyone," she said with a wave, "I hope you're having a good time. Midnight is coming up in about ten minutes so we are going to pass around glasses and I would like everyone to take one, Champagne for the adults and sparkling apple juice for everyone else."

Cecelia leaned in to speak with her friends, "The countdown is the best part, it gets so loud in here, the only part I don't do is the kissing thing."

"What kissing thing?" Al asked.

"Well people kiss each other for good luck when the clock strikes mid night, I've kind of wanted to do it, but I just haven't. Maybe one day I will." she said with a grin.

They each took apple cider from a tray when a server passed by and they eagerly waited for the countdown to start.

"Shoot, I have to go to the restroom," said Winry, "Al, come with me so that I'm not by myself."

The two left and began making their way towards the nearest restroom. Cecelia eyed Ed out of the corner of her eye, but her attention was drawn to the stage when her mother called out, 'Everybody get ready.'

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"Happy New Year!"

Cecelia was about to open her mouth to cheer, but wasn't able to when a pair of lips collided with hers. It was short and sweet and ten seconds later she was staring up at a pair of golden eyes that look just as bewildered as she did.

"W-what?" she stammered, trying not to blush but failing miserably.

"Oh jeez, I'm really sorry. Someone bumped into me and I did that and ummm…." he explained, waving his hands frantically while his cheeks burned red.

"Its okay, its okay I believe you! It was an accident."

He nodded and then sipped at his sparkling drink, Cecelia following suit.

_That wasn't bad…I actually kind of liked it. I'm gonna have a good year, I can tell thanks to you Mr. Edward Elric._

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><p>I hope you guys liked this chapter! Please please please come back for the next chapter and drop a review if you have the time.<p> 


	16. Chapter 16

Open Up

Hehe, so I posted this a lot sooner than I had planned, but I thought 'I have to get this up today!' BECAUSE on the last chapter I got five reviews. And that may not sound like a lot, but that's the most reviews I've received for one single chapter. So thank you to the five of you who reviewed and this one is for you. I hope everyone enjoys!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia and her family.

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><p>Things were a little hectic for the girls in the Wheelright house that morning. Ed, Al, Cecelia and Winry were leaving to go back to Central and the two young women were trying to pack their bags. Ed and Al were ready to go and waiting by the front door. Ed huffed and crossed his arms.<p>

"How long does it take to pack?" he asked.

"They are girls Ed, and Cecelia has a lot of things to pack seeing as she is going to be staying with you for awhile."

"I guess that's true."

Ed had agreed to let Cecelia stay with him while she was in Central for her book. He didn't exactly want her living by herself in a big city that she wasn't used to. It just didn't sit right with him. She insisted that she get a job to help him pay for things. He told her that she didn't have to, he had plenty of money saved up from when he worked for the military and plus he was working for a well known chemist. But she wouldn't budge and when they returned to Central he planned on job hunting with her.

"Edward, would you please come into the family room?" Cecelia's mother asked from the living room.

Ed looked at his brother with a questioning look, but only received a shrug as a response. He trailed into the family room and stood across the room from Lisa Wheelright who was seated on the couch.

"Please take a seat; I just want to have a chat."

Ed sat down and couldn't help but feel a little nervous. Having a one on one talk with an adult woman would be intimidating for any twenty year old man. He rested his hands on his knees and looked at Lisa.

"So, Cecelia told me she is staying with you while she's in Central."

"Yeah, it would be a hassle for her to stay in a hotel and it would be safer if she stayed with me anyway."

Lisa nodded, "I agree…Edward…I want you to take care of Cecelia."

"I'll make sure she doesn't get into any trouble." he said.

"I want you to promise me that she won't get hurt, she's my youngest child and my only daughter."

"I promise, I'll make sure nothing happens to her."

He stared her straight in the eye with determination in his eyes so she knew he was being serious. If there was one thing he took to heart, it was his promises and he wasn't about to let her down. She offered him a smile and nodded.

"You know, Cecelia has really taken a liking to you and your brother. She usually doesn't bring people home to visit."

"Umm, that's nice to hear."

They both sat there in a comfortable silence before Lisa stood up and crossed the room. Ed stood up to meet her and was surprised when she wrapped he arms around his mid section.

"Thank you for taking care of my daughter," she held him out at arm's length to look at him, "and you are always welcome here, we've only known you for a little more than a week and a half and I already consider you family. Winry and Al too, I want all of you to come back. "

Ed took in a sharp breath and much to his displeasure his eyes watered. _She said we were family…_

"Thank you Mrs. Wheelright and we will definitely take you up on that sometime. We really appreciate you-"

He was interrupted by a series of loud thuds coming from the other room and a loud 'Ow'! They both hurried into the entry way and saw Cecelia on the floor with her two suitcases next to her.

"What happed?" asked her mother.

"My boots were untied."

Ed's hand twitched and he had to stop himself from smacking his forehead.

"Well tie your boots darling; I'm going to get your father so we can take you all to the station."

Lisa left the two young adults alone and Ed looked down at Cecelia. She readjusted herself on the floor and began tying her boots, all the while grumbling about how they shouldn't have come undone. Ed rolled his eyes and called for Al to come downstairs. As if on cue, Al and Winry began making their way over to them.

"Make sure your shoes are tied because clumsy over here just fell."

He just barely missed Cecelia's foot when she tried to kick his leg. He smirked down at her and she only stuck her tongue out at him. Al and Winry laughed and managed to make it downstairs in one peace. Cecelia's parents met up with them and they all left the house. The two adults pulled back and watched the younger ones walk ahead.

"You know, Cecelia picked a good one." Lisa said to her husband.

"Hm?"

Lisa gestured towards their daughter. They watched as Ed took one of Cecelia's suitcases so she wouldn't have so much trouble walking. Their hearts warmed up after seeing the bright smile that appeared on her face.

"But they're just friends Lisa."

"A mother can just tell with these kinds of things."

After they all arrived at the train station, Ed, Al, Winry, and Cecelia all dealt with their luggage, said goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Wheelright and got situated on the train. Ed and Winry sat on one bench while Cecelia and Al sat across from them on another bench. As soon as the train started to pull out, Cecelia had her feet propped up on Ed's lap. At this point he'd accepted that her feet would always find place on his lap. The four of them spent a good amount of the trip just talking or playing cards until the girls both dozed off.

"Al, I spoke with Cecelia's mother today and she said that we were welcome there. She said we were like family…" said Edward while staring out the window.

"She did?"

Ed nodded.

"That's really nice… I really liked spending Christmas with them. I mean Granny and Winry are family and I love them, but spending Christmas here was like… I don't know, experiencing what we missed out on with mom and dad."

"I know what you mean, Cecelia's lucky to have a family like that." he said, directing his gaze to the sleeping girl sitting across from him.

Her head was leaning against the window and some of her chestnut brown hair draped over her face. Her lips were barely parted and she had her hands folded in her lap.

"Brother, you like her don't you?" Al asked with a mischievous grin.

"What? I think she's an interesting person, that's all."

"Oh sure, says the one who was just staring at her." he teased.

Ed reached over to swat at his little brother, but quickly stopped when Cecelia started to get restless from all the moving he was doing. He shot Al a dirty look and stopped his failed attempts at an attack.

"What about you and May hmmm?"

Al shrugged, "There's nothing going on between May and I. She's a good friend and besides, I could never permanently live in Xing and she wouldn't leave her clan to live with me in Amestris."

_Dammit, I can't tease him if there isn't anything going on between them. _

"I will be returning to Xing soon, I still need finish my studies but I have a feeling I'm close to being done." he said.

"Oh really? Well when you finish up, you're welcome to stay with me until you get situated."

"I'll take you up on that."

Ed and Al chatted for awhile longer until the latter left for the restroom. With nothing else to do, Ed returned to looking out the window until his eye lids began to droop and soon after he was sleeping. Al returned from the bathroom and smiled at the sight of his brother and friends all asleep. He looked from Ed to Cecelia and back to Ed. Quietly he sat down and pulled out the book he got from Ed for Christmas. Before reading he mumbled,

"You be good to him Cecelia, or you'll have to deal with me".

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><p>Oh boy, foreshadowing! Well I'll see you all in the next chapter and please drop a review if you're able!<p> 


	17. Chapter 17

Open Up

Oh boy, I really liked writing this chapter but what I really liked was all the great reviews I got over the weekend. They were awesome and I really appreciate it, so thanks to everyone who has reviewed this story so far. You guys are the best!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>Cecelia sat on Ed's couch and looked around the empty apartment. For the first time since she'd been in Central, she was alone. Al had to go back to Xing for his studies, Winry went home to help her grandma with work and Ed was working. She was by herself and bored. She tried reading one of Ed's books, but none of them caught her interest. For the better part of the morning, she set up her new room and even organized Ed's kitchen. But after a good few hours of cleaning and being inside, she was ready for some fresh air and something exciting to do.<p>

"You know, I don't exactly need Ed's help to find a job," she said while pulling on her jacket, "if I stay around this area then I'll be able to find my way back before he comes home."

She stepped into her boots and securely laced them up. She fished around in her pockets to make sure her billfold was there and when everything was accounted for, she stepped outside making sure to lock the door behind her.

"Alright, where should I go first?"

She looked to her left and right, trying to decide which path to take before finally deciding on the left. Cecelia walked down the sidewalk, taking in a big breath through her nose and letting the cold winter air bite at her nostrils. It was refreshing after being inside all day. She passed by a small market store and stopped to take a peek through the big main window.

"We do need groceries…"

An hour later, Cecelia was stuck carrying two big brown bags stuffed to the brim with food ranging from vegetables to cane sugar.

"Ed had better appreciate this," she grumbled under her breath," these are heavy as hell."

She continued down the street, debating whether or not to go back to the apartment and drop off her load, but her thoughts were cut short when she rammed into someone or something. Landing on her butt, she grunted and rubbed her back side.

"Oh dear, I am so very sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going."

Cecelia looked up into the eyes of a very concerned woman. Shaking her head, Cecelia got up on her feet and began reloading her bags.

"Don't worry about it, I wasn't paying attention either."

The woman started picking up some of the fallen items and passing them to her. Cecelia noticed a sparkling ring on the woman's left ring finger when she grabbed an apple from her. _Good grief, married? She only looks a little older than I am._

"I really am sorry about running in to you and knocking your things down."

"It's alright, we're both at fault."

After everything was packed up again, Cecelia held her hand out. "I'm Cecelia Wheelright."

The woman took her hand and lightly shook it.

"My name is Gretchen Hudson and it's a pleasure to meet you Cecelia."

"Likewise.

Cecelia took the time to give Gretchen a look through. She looked harmless. Gretchen had soft blond hair that hung in ringlets and the greenest eyes she'd ever seen. She was a good three inches taller than Cecelia's hefty 5'2 frame, but the fact that she was wearing heeled shoes probably helped with that. Gretchen wore a fancy red coat with red trimming, but it just didn't look right to Cecelia. She pictured her being a more down to earth woman, not some uppity socialite.

"Why don't we go out for lunch?"

Ed had to have the greatest boss in history. Mr. Winters; his employer, had let him take two winter vacations and was letting him leave early today. When Ed asked why he let him take all this time off, all the older man said was 'I've never met a young man so interested in the art of science, you're welcome to all the time you need off.' Ed hurried out of Mr. Winters' shop and went towards his apartment. He'd promised to help Cecelia go job hunting today. He fished his keys out of his pocket when he arrived at his front door, unlocked it and slipped inside.

"Hey Cecelia, I'm home early."

He waited for awhile for a response, but when he heard nothing, he went through the apartment to investigate. He checked her room, his room, the restroom and the kitchen but she wasn't home. Panic quickly blossomed in his being. _I told her to stay here until I got home, she's been in Central for two weeks and whenever she went out she was with Al. She doesn't know where she's going. _Cursing under his breath, Ed spun on his heel and hurried outside with horrid thoughts of his companion wandering around lost in such a big city filling his mind.

Ed wandered down the streets looking for Cecelia. He looked down alleys, peeked into various shops and even asked a few people if they'd seen her and as the sun started going down, his frustrations grew. After an hour of searching, he was beginning to lose hope until he heard a loud laugh.

"I know that laugh…"

He scanned the area until his eyes landed on a brunette sitting at a café table across from a blond woman. After making sure it was Cecelia, he began marching towards her.

"Hey Cecelia." he snapped, loud enough for her to hear him.

She stood and turned to face him with a smile. "Oh hey there Ed, you'll never guess what happened today, I-"

He interrupted her. "What in the hell do you think you're doing?"

Her smile fell and was replaced with a frown. "What are you talking about?"

"Did you seriously think going out into Central by yourself was a good idea? You've gone out maybe four times and that was when Al went with you, you could have gotten lost or something."

"I know where the apartment is, I could have gotten back on my own." She said, glaring at him and crossing her arms over her chest.

"Oh sure you could, what street do I live on?"

When she didn't reply, he continued. "Something seriously wrong could have happened and I wouldn't have known where to look because you didn't leave a note or anything."

"Stop talking to me like I'm a little kid, I can take care of myself." she hissed.

"Well you're sure acting like a child."

She huffed and picked up her bags from the ground. "It was nice meeting you Gretchen and I'll keep in touch."

For the first time Ed noticed the other woman at the table and he suddenly regretted yelling at Cecelia in public. _That lady probably thinks I'm a psycho now._ She did look a little frightened. He turned around to follow Cecelia when she passed him. When she started to stomp, he rolled his eyes and stuffed his hands in his pockets. The walk home was more than tense and when they arrived at the door, she actually had the nerve to slam the door in his face. Taking a deep breath, he calmed himself down before going inside. He hung up his coat and grimaced when he heard crashes from the kitchen. Peeking his head around the corner, he saw her putting away groceries without a care.

"Don't break anything." he said after taking a seat on the couch.

"Oh shut up."

Cecelia stormed out of the kitchen and went to her room. Ed winced when the door slammed. He spent the rest of his night finishing up his left over work and retreated to his room after he'd showered. He plopped down on his bed and sighed, staring up at the ceiling.

"I guess I could have been a little nicer…"

Groaning, he crawled under the blankets and rolled onto his stomach. He did a little bit of thinking before finally falling asleep, but he didn't sleep through the night. At around midnight, his dream woke him up. It was of him yelling at Cecelia, but it kept replaying in his head. He sat up and ran his fingers through his hair.

"I have to apologize."

Ed pulled a shirt over his head and left his room. He lifted his hand to knock on her door, but it never made contact because the door swung open to reveal a tired looking Cecelia. Her hair was a mess and her pajamas; black cotton shorts and a yellow tank top, looked wrinkled.

"Listen I've got to…" he started, just as she began to speak.

"You go first Ed."

Taking a deep breath, he started to apologize. "I shouldn't have yelled at you like that earlier today. You're an adult and you can take care of yourself just like you said. I'm sorry."

She shook her head. "I'm the one who should be apologizing, you were right. I should have left you a note and let you know that I was going out."

"So are we okay now?" he asked, holding out his hand.

"Absolutely and Ed you should know me better than that."

Before he could question her, she flung her arms around his middle and pulled him into a hug which he returned after a moment.

"I'm a hugger."

She released him and placed her hands on her hips.

"Now that we've gotten that out of the way, I'm gonna go to bed. Goodnight Ed."

She shut her door and left him alone in the small hallway. He stood there for a little bit before entering his own room and getting back in bed. He placed his hand over his heart and couldn't help but scowl. His heart beat had become irregular and he couldn't figure out why, it had started just after Cecelia hugged him. _I'm a scientist damn it, I should be able to figure this out. _Sighing, he let the thought leave his mind and let sleep take him away. This time, he slept peacefully knowing he'd cleared things up with Cecelia.

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><p>Hehe I hoped you liked this chapter and please drop a review if you're able. See you all in the next chapter!<p> 


	18. Chapter 18

Open Up

Meh, this chapter was alright to write. I guess it's kind of a filler of sorts, I have the plot in my head, but I don't want to just jump right into it. Anyway, thank you to everyone who left me a review, they were awesome and I loved them. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!

Typical disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>The next morning Cecelia decided against waking up early and slept in until Ed came and woke her up for breakfast. Typically an early riser, the extra hours of beauty sleep were much appreciated and she felt extra energized today. She rolled out of bed and after she arranged herself, trailed out of her room and plopped her butt onto a dining chair. A strong scent was coming from the kitchen and she took a big sniff.<p>

"What did you make?" she asked.

"Breakfast." Ed said as he entered the dining area with two plates in hand.

He set a plate down in front of her before taking a seat across from her. Cecelia looked down at her breakfast which consisted of fried eggs, toast and a slice of ham. When her stomach started to rumble, she dug into her meal and was surprised that his food tasted good.

"I didn't know you could cook."

"Just because I don't cook doesn't mean I can't," he said in between bites, "and besides, I can only do basic things like this."

"I see, I'll have to keep that in mind."

They both continued to eat in silence and for awhile Cecelia started to pick at her food until she remembered what she needed to tell him yesterday afternoon.

"I got a job yesterday."

Ed looked up from his food and offered a small smile. "That's fantastic, but why didn't you tell me earlier?"

She frowned. "I tried telling you earlier, but you started yelling at me so I never got the chance."

"And I apologized for that already, now just tell me how everything happened."

"Gretchen; the woman who I was having lunch with yesterday, helped me get one, apparently her sister was already working there and talked me up to her boss. I got the job right on the spot."

"Oh really? Where are you working at?"

"At a bar."

Ed spewed his water across the table and Cecelia stared down at her food, appalled that it was now sprinkled with his saliva.

"Are you kidding me Cecelia? You got a job at a bar?"

"I sure did, I wanted to get a job that would expose me to a lot of people so I will have a better chance of meeting a publisher who will take me seriously." she said.

"And you chose a bar?"

"Oh hush, you're making it sound way worse than it actually is. The owner's name is Madame Christmas and she was really nice when I was being interviewed."

Ed paused to scratch his chin. "Where have I heard that name before?"

"Ummm, well she's kind of scary looking and has a scratchy voice, but she's a nice lady I promise. I'll be perfectly fine, I go in tonight for training."

"Do you remember where it is?" he asked.

Cecelia looked at him with a blank stare and he sighed.

"I'll find out where it is and I'll take you when I'm done working."

She smiled and reached across the table to take his empty plate. After she stacked his plate on top of hers, she pushed away from the table and wandered into the kitchen.

"Shouldn't you be leaving for work soon anyway?" she asked as she washed their dishes.

Cecelia chuckled when she heard him frantically moving about and a few moments later the front door slammed. _I swear if he makes me late on my first day, I will kill him. _

Cecelia spent the rest of her day working on or finishing up knitting projects that she'd started and around four she hopped into the shower. She made sure to wash every inch of her body and took extra care of brushing her hair when she was all cleaned up. Deciding what to wear caused a real problem for her though, there were so many options and it was hard for her to pick something. In the end she ended up in a slim navy blue sweater with a scoop neck and form fitting black pants. By the time Ed arrived home, she was anxiously waiting on the couch for him.

"Come on come on, we've got to go." she said, pulling on her coat and ushering him out the door.

"But I just got here."

"We don't have time, I need to go already."

Ed sighed and led the frantic young woman do her destination. It was maybe a ten to fifteen minute walk from his apartment, but it felt like forever to him because of Cecelia's insisting they needed to speed up. By the time they'd arrived, Ed was dead on his feet. Working already took a lot out of him and then having to walk Cecelia to work was the cherry on top. When they entered, Cecelia went straight to the backroom which was apparently for employees only while Ed took to a stool at the counter. One of the barmaids appeared in an instant and asked what he would like.

"Um, I was going to wait on Cecelia." he said, gesturing towards the backroom door.

The woman smiled. "Cecelia's here? I'm going to be the one training her today."

She left him at the counter and he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the counter. He sighed and let his eyes flutter close, the sounds of the bustling bar actually helping him unwind, but it didn't last long. He straightened up when someone pinched his arm and he turned, posed to chew out his attacker but his scowl morphed into a smile at the sight of his old commander and friend.

"Well if it isn't Fullmetal."

Ed scowled again. "I told you not to call me that anymore Colonel."

"And I've told you that I've been promoted to Brigadier General." Roy said with a smirk before taking a seat next to the younger man.

"Oh whatever, Brigadier General Mustang," he said sarcastically, "what are you doing here anyway?"

"Just visiting a friend and what are you doing here?"

"A girl who is living with me got a job here."

Roy's smirk grew. "And what is a woman doing living with you? Have you finally found a woman who is okay with your stature?"

"Shut up, I've grown a lot since I was a state alchemist." Ed snapped, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You're still not taller than I am."

"Sorry I'm not a giant freak like you are."

"You're not as handsome as I am either."

That earned him a nasty glare from the young blond which only brought on a loud laugh.

"I disagree, I think Edward is handsome." Cecelia added from behind the counter. She'd arrived midway through their conversation with her trainer; Gretchen's older sister Ellie, but the two men didn't acknowledge them. Ed couldn't help but blush from the indirect compliment and he looked away, this did not go unnoticed by Mustang, but the latter decided against commenting. Instead he grabbed Cecelia's hand and gave it a firm shake.

"I'm Brigadier General Roy Mustang. And you are Miss?"

"I'm bar maid in training Cecelia Wheelright at your service."

"Well Miss Wheelright, I do believe Edward and I would be happy to assist you in your training by being your first customers. Why don't you start us off with something to eat?"

That first order started a long train of demands from the duo. They showed no mercy on the young trainee and had her constantly refilling glasses, cleaning up spills and bringing out appetizers. They were even giving an experienced employee like Ellie a run for her money. If it weren't for Madame Christmas jumping in and calling off her foster son, he and Ed would have run the two girls ragged.

"You did a good job tonight Cecelia, come in tomorrow and we'll actually have real customers for you, " called Madame Christmas after shooting Roy a look, "and leave the blond one at home so I can train you properly."

"Will do Madame, I'll see you tomorrow." Cecelia said before walking out the door with her companion.

As soon as they stepped out into the cold empty streets, she jabbed Ed in the arm. He grunted and massaged the affected area, but deep down he knew he deserved it for giving her such a hard time so he didn't harass her for the hit. After they walked for awhile, she linked her arm with his and slowed down a bit.

"Lets walk a little slower, it's nice outside."

"No it isn't its freezing." he protested.

"Stop being a baby."

They strolled through the chilly Central streets and Ed listened as Cecelia complained about him causing a ruckus, but he was pleased to hear her say she enjoyed his company for the most part. Slowly but surely Ed and Cecelia arrived at his apartment, which was warm and welcoming. They took off their coats and both excused themselves for bed. Cecelia peeled off her clothes which smelled of the bar and changed into fresh pajamas. She went through her nightly routine which consisted of combing her hair, brushing her teeth and cleaning up her room before she slipped into her bed.

"First day of work, a piece of cake…a piece of really hard cake." she said to herself.

Cecelia lay awake for awhile longer until sleep came to her. The next morning, the first thought that came to mind was about her dreams. They didn't make any sense to her and it kind of put her on edge.

"Why was I dreaming about Ed?"

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><p>Woohoo Mustang. Feel free to leave me a review, they are awesome and I will see everyone in the next chapter!<p> 


	19. Chapter 19

Open Up

Hey everyone. I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed for the previous chapter and I threw in a little something special for you guys. I hope you all enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia, Gretchen, and Ellie.

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><p>Cecelia and Ed slowly fell into a daily routine as weeks passed by. In the mornings Cecelia made breakfast for herself and Ed, who would then go to work. From there she would do a few cleaning tasks and go to an interview with a publisher if she was able to set up the appointment, but otherwise she would just knit or read one of Ed's books. When he returned, he would walk her to Madame Christmas' bar and have dinner there. If it was especially cold, he would bring any work he needed to do with him so he wouldn't have to deal with cold, but on any regular night he would just head home after dinner and then go back to pick up Cecelia when she got off. On Sunday afternoons, Cecelia met up with Gretchen and her sister Ellie for lunch and gossiping while Ed called Alphonse and caught up with his little brother. But as January merged into February, Cecelia wanted to spice things up and decided that Ed's upcoming birthday would be perfect. She would throw him a surprise party at the bar and with enough sneakiness; she knew she'd be able to pull it off. She even bought a little notebook to keep track of her ideas. Winry informed her that his favorite food was stew and that she wouldn't be able to make it for his birthday. Al gave her a list of Ed's old friends and with the help of Ellie; she was able to hunt down each and every person to deliver an invitation. But her biggest challenge came forth on the actual day of his birthday; she had no idea how to get him out of the apartment for the day so she could bake his cake and transport it to Madame Christmas'.<p>

Ed sat and watched Cecelia pace around the dining area while he ate his birthday breakfast. She'd made him his own stack of blueberry pancakes with fresh maple syrup, fluffy scrambled eggs and tasty bacon. He was actually surprised that she'd even remembered his birthday, he'd only mentioned it once and it was a comment he made on the side.

"What's got your panties in a bunch?" he asked.

She frowns at him. "None of your business now shut up and eat your pancakes birthday boy."

Shrugging his shoulders, he continued eating until his plate was cleaned off and his stomach was about to burst. He watched her as she took his plate and retreated into the kitchen, the sound of running water emerging soon after. With nothing better to do, he wandered into the bathroom to take a shower. He started the water and waited until it was at the perfect temperature before stripping off his clothes and jumping in. The warm water relaxes him and he lets it glide down his back and down to the floor. After dilly dallying in the shower for a few minutes, he blindly grabs the first shampoo bottle he touches and squeezes its contents into his hands. A strong scent that resembled strawberries and vanilla wafted up to his nose and he frowned.

"Dammit." He'd grabbed Cecelia's shampoo by mistake. "Well I can't just waste it."

He scrubs the stuff into his hair and massages it into lather. Although he would never admit it to anyone, he liked the way it smelled but it's better suited for Cecelia. Ed rinses it out of his hair and this time he grabs his own conditioner and runs it through his hair until it was soft as silk. He cleans of his body, turns off the water and steps out into the steamy bathroom. He grabs his towel and dries himself off, wrapping it around his waist before opening the door. Just as it opened, Cecelia was passing but stops to stare at him, her blank stare transforming into a smirk.

"Smells pretty good in there." she said.

He couldn't help but blush. She laughed as she left and went to her room. With a huff, Ed hurried into his own bedroom. He decides on wearing a black long sleeved shirt with a red jacket and black pants. _I haven't worn this color combo in a long time. _He began braiding his hair, but let the unfinished braid fall against the black when his telephone started to ring. He went to the living room and picked up the receiver.

"This is Edward Elric."

"Oh Ed what a relief, I need a huge favor."

It was his boss Mr. Winters.

"Sure what do you need?"

"I need you to come in today, I'm having trouble with my back and I need to finish the lab I've been working on today or the ingredients to spoil. I need you to help me. "

Ed's spirits fell. He'd been hoping to spend his birthday at home with Cecelia, but if he needed to go in and work then he would.

"Sure, I'll be there right away."

He hung up the phone and groaned loudly.

"Who was that calling?" asked Cecelia from her room.

"My boss, I need to go in to work today."

"Oh no, that's not fair at all. When do you have to leave?"

"Right now, so I'll see you later Cecelia."He threw his hair up into a ponytail for the sake of time, tugged on his jacket and left.

Cecelia waited until the door slammed to start laughing. She'd called Alphonse while Ed was showering because she needed help coming up with an idea to get Ed out of the house. Al said he would take care of it and boy did he! She was quite pleased with the result and although she felt sort of bad making Ed work on his twenty-first birthday, the party tonight would definitely make up for it. After she got over her fit of happiness, she got to work. She whipped up a rich chocolate cake and decorated it with white frosting. She finished up her present to Ed; a knitted blue hat with a little puff on the top and a matching scarf, and got it all wrapped it up. She made a special stew that her mother always made when she was younger and before she knew it, evening had come and she needed to get going. She packed up all the things she would need and frowned.

"I'm gonna have to make two trips."

On her first trip, she dropped off her present and the cake. On the second trip she carried the heavy stew pot and she would have dropped it if Ellie hadn't helped her carry it to the kitchen. From there she began decorating the bar with balloons and above the counter strung a banner that read 'Happy Birthday Ed!' By the time she and Ellie finished decorating, people had begun to arrive and she went to the phone, dialed the number for Mr. Winters and waited until he put Ed on the line.

"Hey Cecelia, what's up?"

"Ed I really need you right now, I slipped while I was at the bar and I need your help getting home."

She heard him curse and had to choke back a giggle.

"Seriously, why is everyone getting hurt? I'll get there as fast as I can."

"Alright bye Ed."

She hung up the phone and turned to the small mass of people who had arrived.

"Alright everyone, he's on his way so get into position."

Madame Christmas blew out a few of the candles to dim the light a little bit and decided she would keep watch for Ed. After a few minutes of squatting behind the counter, Cecelia's legs were starting to hurt and she wanted to stand up, but decided against it when Madame Christmas quietly announced that she'd spotted Ed. Excitement built up in her chest and she nearly jumped when she heard the bells on the door jingle, signaling his arrival to everyone in the building.

"Surprise!"

Ed's heart nearly jumped right out of his chest when he stepped into the bar. His friends all looked at him expectantly, but before he could even react, he had to catch his breath. Cecelia caught his attention from behind the bar.

"Happy Birthday Ed!"

"What…what is all this?"

"It's a surprise party, duh." She said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"You planned all this?"

She nodded proudly. "Sure did, now let's get the party started."

Ellie took her place behind the piano and began to play a cheerful tune. People began to dance and enjoy themselves while Cecelia took to making sure drinks were filled and passing out bowls of stew. Meanwhile, Ed had the chance to catch up with old friends. Riza looked charming with her cropped hair, his back nearly broke with Alex Luis Armstrong wrapped him up in a bear hug and he was so excited to see Gracia and Alicia Hughes, the little shrimp had grown up a lot since he saw her last, she was at least ten. He even managed to coax a happy birthday from Roy. When Ed blew out the candles on his cake, Cecelia somehow ended up smearing icing all over his cheek, but he didn't mind it one bit. While Cecelia was handing out slices of cake, Gretchen Hudson arrived and went straight to Cecelia.

"Oh man, I didn't think you were going to be able to come."

"I can't stay for too long, I just wanted to wish Edward a pleasant birthday is all."

"Come on Gretchen, hang around for a little bit."

"I really shouldn't, I'm going to find Edward and head out."

Cecelia's eyes zeroed in on a dark weal on her neck, but before she had the chance to examine it, Gretchen had turned around and began making her way through the crowd. She kept her eye on her and her eye brow shot up when a dirty blond haired man with a cigarette in his mouth approached her. Gretchen's skin very obviously paled and she scurried out of the building, the cigarette man reaching out for her but with no such luck. Gretchen booked it out of there. _I'll confront her about the bruise and that guy later… _

Time passed everyone by and to Ed and Cecelia's dismay; it was time for everyone to head home. The two stayed around and cleaned everything up before leaving. Ed had on his new scarf and hat and he could tell that Cecelia was happy about that. He decided on carrying the stew pot while she carried the tray that held the cake.

"So what did you think of the party?" she asked while they walked.

"I loved it, I hadn't realized how much I missed seeing everyone from the past until today. It was really nice seeing them all today…thank you Cecelia. You're always doing these big things for us. First you invite me and Al over for Christmas and then you do this? You've been great and I want you to know that I appreciate everything."

She wasn't expecting a speech or anything but none the less, she was flattered.

"You're welcome; I wanted you to have a special birthday. You only turn twenty one once."

They spent the rest of the walk in silence and when they were in the apartment, they both went straight for the kitchen and together they washed the dishes. When they'd finished up, Ed looked down at Cecelia and stuffed his hands into his pockets. He wasn't sure why, but he felt as if the heat had been turned up and his heart was racing. He hadn't felt anything like this before, not around Winry or any other woman for that woman. Cecelia was just something else. His eyes darted from her pretty hazel eyes to her flush lips. _I…I want to… I…_ Taking a leap of faith, he cupped her cheeks in his hands, leaned down and pressed his lips against hers.

It was as if everything in the universe stopped at that moment. He was scared but at the same time exhilarated. He'd kissed Winry before, but he never got a feeling like this. He never felt sparks. After what felt like forever, he pulled back just enough to get a good look at Cecelia's face. Her cheeks were flushed and she was wearing a small smile. Without another word, they both left the kitchen and retired to their respective rooms. Nothing needed to be said. He knew he felt something and was positive she did too. Ed peeled off his clothes and traded them out for pajamas. He crawled into bed and got comfortable.

"Cecelia...I think I…"

His eye lids droops and he drifted to sleep.

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><p>Ooh la la! I hope you all enjoyed and please leave a review if you're able cause I love them oh so much. See you all in the next chapter!<p> 


	20. Chapter 20

Open Up

I'm either very predictable or you all are just really smart. **Lenne** suggested I write about Ed's past and all I could think was 'uhh... are you a psychic?' Anywho, thanks to all ten of you who reviewed. Never had that many in one chapter! It was awesome and I hope you guys like this chapter!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia, Ellie and Gretchen.

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><p>The next morning Ed woke up earlier than he usually would. It was especially odd because today was Sunday, his and Cecelia's days off. He turned to the clock and it read 5:47. <em>Why am I up so early?<em> But he knew the answer to that. The events from last night would raise him from his dreams and he slept in intervals. He acted impulsively last night kissing Cecelia. He knew that he felt something for her. Was it love? He wasn't sure; he'd never been in love before. Sure he loves certain people, his brother and Winry but it's not the same as romantic love. He knew who he wanted to ask about his dilemma, but he didn't think Mrs. Hughes would appreciate him calling her this early in the morning so Ed settled for the next best thing. Alphonse.

"Ed? What in the world are you doing up so early?" asked Al when he got on the line.

"I couldn't sleep last night."

"What's wrong? Cecelia isn't playing tricks on you is she?"

"No, no, no she hasn't done anything, but I actually need to talk to you about her." Ed said nervously. He was nervous and considering not going through with it, but he needed answers.

"Go for it."

"Al I kissed her last night. I just felt like I really needed to do it and so I went for it and she didn't reject me or anything so that's not what I'm worried about. I'm not sure what I should do now. I know that I like her…I mean I like her a lot, but…" he trailed off.

"Well, do you love her or do you just really like her?"

"See that's the thing. I've never been in love with anyone before so I don't really know how I'm supposed to know if I love her not." Ed answered.

There was a brief pause on Al's side before he replied. "I'm sorry brother, but I'm not really sure what to tell you seeing as I've never really been in love either. I would just be upfront with her about it and I mean upfront about everything."

Ed gulped, he knew exactly what Al was referring to…their past.

"Do you really think I should?"

"Absolutely, if you want to be in any sort of relationship with Cecelia then you have to tell her. She deserves to know the truth and I know she wouldn't hold any of it against you."

Ed was about to reply but paused when he heard rustling come from Cecelia's bedroom. "Alright Al, thanks and I'll talk to you later."

"Goodbye brother, I wish you good luck and expect a call from me later on tonight."

Ed hung up the phone and sucked in a deep breath, hoping it would calm is racing heart but it did very little. He hated talking about the past and this would be the first time in years that he'd talked to anyone about it. Gathering his courage, Ed walked to Cecelia's room and entered after he knocked. She was sitting up in her bed, her eyes glazed over and she was obviously still tired.

"Edward? What are you doing in here?" she asked after collected her surroundings.

"I wanted to talk to you about something Cecelia."

"And it couldn't have waited until later?"

He anxiously squeezed his hands together. "I can go if you want me to."

"I was just kidding, let's talk." She leans forward and gestures toward the foot of the bed.

Ed goes and takes a seat by her feet, keeping his eyes down on his lap. He wasn't sure how to start. It was quiet for awhile and he begins to talk after Cecelia encourages him to begin.

"Do you remember around Christmas time when you asked me how I got the scar on my shoulder?" She nods. "Well I wanted to tell you about it."

"Oh Ed you don't have to if you're not ready. You're shaking like a leaf as is."

He hadn't noticed. "You deserve to know about though…you deserve to know everything so I'll start at the beginning. When Al and I were really little, my father left us and our mother; Trisha, to take care of some business, but mom did her best and took care of us. But then the epidemic came and she passed away. Winry's family took care of Al and me, but I didn't want them. I wanted my mother. So Al and I started studying my father's alchemy books and started training under a woman named Izumi Curtis. We got better and better at alchemy and when the time was right we tried bringing her back. We performed the ultimate taboo."

He had to stop and take another deep breath.

"We performed human transmutation and it rebounded on us. I lost my left leg, but Al lost his entire body." Cecelia gasped, but he had to continue. "I thought I'd lost him and it would have been for nothing. The thing we made wasn't our mother, it was a monster. I had to trade my right arm to get his soul back and I bound him to a suit of armor."

"For awhile I thought all was lost. I was a kid with only one arm and a leg while my brother was stuck in a suit of armor. But then Colonel, well he was a Colonel at the time; Mustang came to Resembool and spoke to us. He inspired me to become a State Alchemist so I could get back mine and Al's bodies. From there I became a state alchemist they called me the Fullmetal Alchemist." He patted his left leg for emphasis.

Cecelia's eyes bulged. "Oh my gosh that was you? I remember when you came to Rush Valley and made a mess of things with those foreigners, when I got home from school my father was raving on and on about it!"

Ed couldn't help but smile at the memory of his first encounter with Lan Fan and Fu.

"Yeah that was me, but I'd like to point out that it wasn't my fault. Anyway, we started doing tasks for the military while searching for the Philosophers stone while we could, but things didn't go as we planned." He had to stop again, deciding against telling Cecelia about how the stones were made. "It wasn't something we wanted to use…Cecelia do you remember a time a few years back, did you and your family pass out at the same time?"

She pressed her lips together in thought. "Actually I do remember that, we were all sitting at the table for a late supper when everything went black. I felt so trapped and cold, like there was no hope. Only suffering. But then I sort of just woke up. We all did."

"Yeah… that happened to everyone in Amestris. Their souls were stripped from their bodies, but my father brought them all back."

"How did he do that?" she asked after getting over the initial shock of learning her soul had been stolen for a brief moment.

"I don't really want to talk about it, it's really complicated."

"Alright, please continue then."

"Okay. Well in Central there was a huge confrontation. I'm sure you heard about it. The Fuher being killed and Briggs taking over Central command, I was in the middle of it. Things got really out of hand and I nearly died if it weren't for Al. He sacrificed his soul to give me my right arm back. I was so angry at him but at the same time I was so scared. I wouldn't have been able to recover if Al was gone. So in the end I traded my ability to perform alchemy to bring him back, soul and all. That's how I got my scar. That's why I'm so protective of Al. That's why I have this automail leg. And that's why I have such a hard time letting people in." He said the last part so quietly that Cecelia had to strain herself to hear him.

For awhile they were both quiet and still. Cecelia sat there, soaking in all the information she'd just learned about the young man sitting at the foot of her bed. Ed kept his eyes glued on his feet, his heart nearly flying out of his chest and his hands clenched so tight that the skin over his knuckles was white. He heard her shuffling around and felt the bed shift and she ended up kneeling behind him.

"You are so brave," she started, leaning forward to rest her hands on his shoulders, "you and Al both. The two of you have gone through so much and yet you both have the best hearts out of anyone I've ever known. And I mean that."

Her hands moved and she was combing her fingers through his hair. No one had done that in a long time, his mother being the last person to run their fingers through his hair. His eyes fluttered shut and Cecelia continued.

"I feel so honored that you've told me all of this, I know it was pretty hard to open up, but I want you to know that you letting me in means a lot to me."

"But aren't you freaked out? I tried bringing someone back from the dead…I have a fake limb."

"You tried bringing your mom back out of love Ed. You loved her so much and you missed her. That's all it was, you're not sick because of it. I mean it was definitely a lot to take in and I'm still a little shaken up by it, but I don't think any less of you Edward Elric and that's a fact."

They were both silent again. Cecelia continued running her fingers through Ed's hair which had become soft as silk while secretly cheered in his head. He'd thought his story would send her running for the hills, but he was pleasantly wrong. After awhile he twisted around to look at her. _God she's beautiful. _Her wavy brown hair was mussed from sleep, but it somehow suited her just fine. Her hazel eyes seemed to be sparkling and a light smile was playing at her lips.

"Thank you Cecelia…"

He stood up and offered her his hand which she accepted. Ed pulled her out of bed and up onto her feet, leading her out of her room and to the kitchen.

"Hungry?" he asked.

"Starving." She answered.

"Why don't we make something together?"

Her smile slowly morphed into a grin and she nods happily, parading over to the ice bin and going through its contents. Ed watched her. _She really is something else…_ His chest started to tighten again, but not in a nervous way. It was something else, a good something. He remembered having the same feeling when he went to bed a few months ago. He had yelled at Cecelia earlier that day, but when she hugged him that night after they apologized, it was like she set something a light in him and he liked it.

"Are you coming to help me?" she asked, snapping out of his train of thought.

"I always will."

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><p>Woohoo! I hope you all liked it. Leave me a review if you can!<p> 


	21. Chapter 21

Open Up

Hey everyone, I hope you all like this chapter. I again want to thank everyone who has been reading and leaving me reviews. They are super encouraging and very helpful. I definitely want to thank **hikaru1012** for catching a mistake I made in the previous chapter so I could go back and fix it. I also want to thank **Lenne **for pitching me really good ideas to add to this story. So thank you both, you're the best!

Typical disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia and friends.

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><p>Cecelia was practically on cloud nine for the rest of the morning. Ed telling her about his past was exciting for her because he would never open up to her when she questioned him about it and the fact that he told her on his own was a gift in itself. Then making breakfast with her was like the cherry on top. She was as chipper as a kid opening presents on Christmas as she did her typical morning routine and she practically floated to the café where she was meeting Ellie and Gretchen for lunch.<p>

"Why are you in such a good mood?" asked Ellie when she arrived.

"I had a nice morning, that's all." She answered, raising her glass of water to her lips.

"Oh please," Ellie snorts, "I had a good morning too but I'm not prancing around like some love struck teenager, so spill."

"You're awfully pushy this morning. Ed and I just kind of-"

Ellie interrupted her. "You didn't! You gave it up to him didn't you?"

Cecelia spewed her water across the table and stared at Ellie with disbelief written all over her features. "Oh my gosh, I can't believe you just said that in public you pervert! We just had a really good heart to heart talk so get your head out of the gutter." She cried.

Ellie shot her a sly look which only encouraged Cecelia's blush to spread. The waiter must have thought she was crazy or something because she was as red as a tomato and nearly dropped her plate when she went to grab it. Trying to direct the conversation away from her when the waiter left, Cecelia turned to Gretchen.

"So Gretchen, who was that good looking blond you were talking to you last night?"

Gretchen; who had yet to say anything, bashfully looked down at her plate and started moving her food around with her fork. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh yeah you do, I saw him come up to you while I was cutting the cake. He was smoking a cigarette."

"Come on Gretchen, spill the beans to your little sister." Ellie teased.

"I don't want to talk about it anymore." She mumbled.

"You know, he kind of looked familiar, you're not having an affair are you?"

"Ellie stop it please, I am a married woman. I'm not going to fool around with some guy I met at Ed's party." She snapped.

Cecelia and Ellie shared a skeptical look. Gretchen was usually so soft spoken and rarely shared her thoughts or raised her voice, so the way she snapped at Ellie made them both realize that something was up, but decided not to harass her about it for the time being. Cecelia's eyes narrowed in on the mark Gretchen had on her neck. Gretchen tried covering it up with powder, but the garish purple bruise was still visible against her pale skin. The three women moved on and chatted about the party last night. Ellie seemed to enjoy it a lot, she got to show off her piano skills and Gretchen didn't stay around long enough to enjoy it at all. Just as Cecelia was about to order dessert, someone called for Gretchen and the woman's face paled. A large chunky man made his way over to them and he did not look very happy. Cecelia looked back and forth between Ellie and Gretchen. Ellie was shooting man a terrible look while the latter looked like she was going to be sick.

"Gretchen where have you been?" he hissed when he reached the table.

"I-I-I've been here darling...I told you I w-was having lunch with E-Ellie." She said.

Cecelia looked up at him and frowned. _Good Lord, that's Gretchen's husband?_

"I told you to be home by two."

Cecelia looked down at her watch. It was only one twenty.

"I'm s-sorry Brent; I didn't mean to screw up."

"Why are you apologizing to him?" Ellie asked. "He doesn't deserve it and you haven't done anything wrong."

"No one asked for your help you harlot." The man; apparently named Brent, sneered.

His hand shot out and latched onto Gretchen's wrist and making her drop her fork. He jerked her up with enough force that it knocked her chair back and made her hit the table. At this point, everyone in the café was staring at them.

"Hey don't pull her like that; she's not some rag doll." Cecelia snapped.

For the first time Brent acknowledged her and he simply looked her as if she were lower than dirt to him. _Stupid bastard_. She stood up from her chair so she could better confront him.

"I don't know who you think you are little girl but you need to stay out of this. I know how to take care of my wife."

He jabbed Cecelia in the chest with two of his fingers before spinning on his heel and storming out, dragging a stumbling Gretchen behind him.

"Who in the hell does he think he is? Poking me with his grubby sausage finger, he could have broken my collar bone or something and did you see the way he pulled her like that? Gretchen is a human being, not some toy he can toss around. I bet he's the reason she has that bruise on her neck." She ranted.

"You're preaching to the choir Cecelia, I've hated Brent for as long as I've known him."

"Why is she married to that creep?"

"Because she didn't have a choice, our parents more or less sold her off to the highest bidder. Whoever offered the most valuable assets got to marry Gretchen."

"But he's such an awful man… how could they not see that?"

"Because he has status and money, the only things that matter to my parents. They tried marrying me off, but I raised hell, even spit at one of my 'suitors. So they tossed me out and Madame Christmas took me in. I've been working for her ever since." explained Ellie.

"Good grief, do your parents not have a heart?"

"Well if you consider money to be a heart, then they have big ones."

Cecelia silently thanked her parents for letting her control her own life. After the events at the café, she'd lost her appetite and slowly started making her way home when Ellie had to head in to work. The entire way home irritated Cecelia. Seeing the happy couples strolling down the street only saddened her, knowing her friend was stuck in a loveless and obviously abusive marriage. The moment she stepped into Ed's apartment, she called for him. He poked his head out of his door and Cecelia made her way over to him, taking her coat off and tossing it on the couch as she passed it.

"You won't believe what happened to me today while I was at lunch."

Figuring this would be a long story; Ed welcomed her into his bedroom and offered her a seat on his bed where he took a spot next to her.

"Okay I was at lunch and we were teasing Gretchen for a little but when her nasty pig faced husband came along and ruined everything. He started yelling at her in front of everyone and he accused her of being late when it was forty minutes until her curfew. Why does she even have a curfew? She's a grown woman and she should be able to go out for as long as she wants." Cecelia had to stop so she could catch her breath.

"Then he grabbed her arm so tight and just jerked her up so that she hit the table and knocked her chair over. When I tried telling him to cut it out, that idiot called me a little girl and then poked me really hard."

She poked Ed with the same amount of force that Brent used to poke her and it caused Ed discomfort knowing some man had basically pushed Cecelia.

"I'm worried about her Ed." she said when she finished telling her story.

"I wish there was something I could do Cecelia, I can't just go reporting him to the police because I don't have any evidence."

"But what if she gets hurt?"

"I hate that I can't do anything to help her, a man should never hit a woman ever, but for now there just isn't anything we can do. We'll definitely keep an eye on her though."

His response wasn't enough to soothe Cecelia's concerns because she sighs in disappointment and hangs her head.

"I'm sorry Cecelia."

"It's not your fault, you're right, but I promise I'm going to catch that guy in the act and he is going down."

"I know you can do it and I'll be with you every step of the way."

Cecelia liked the sound of that. Smiling, she kicked off her boots and scooted until she was at the head of the bed and patted the spot next to her. Ed crawled over and joined her. _His legs are so much longer than mine._ She wiggled her feet and he chuckled lightly.

"You know, I was almost as short as you are for the longest time. I was 5'4 when I first became a state alchemist."

"That must have been cruddy; I bet people teased you a lot. Did they call you names like shrimp or midget or short stuff or-"

He cut her off. "Now let's not get too carried away."

They both laughed and they spent the next half an hour talking about the disadvantages of being short until Cecelia began to doze off. When she finally fell asleep, Ed slowly eased her into a lying position and pulled his blanket out from under her so he could tuck her in. After he got her all situated, he couldn't help but smile. She looked so small curled up in his bed. Before he could change his mind, he leaned in and placed a light kiss on her temple. He went his bedroom door, shut the light and left, not noticing the small smile appearing on Cecelia's face.

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><p>And the plot thickens. Sorry for all the OC's, but I need them for my plot to work, because believe it or not, there is one. This story won't be all fluff, but I seriously do love fluff. Anywho, thanks for reading and please leave me a review if you can. See you next chapter!<p> 


	22. Chapter 22

Open Up

Hey everyone! I hope you all have a good Halloween tomorrow and that you all like this chapter. Thanks to everyone who's been reviewing and reading, you guys are the best.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia, Ellie and Gretchen

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><p>Cecelia was very eager to be done with work because the next day; March 20th, was going to be big for her. She had an interview for getting her book published around lunch time and she couldn't help but feel nervous. It had been at least a month since she'd had an interview and all the previous ones hadn't ended well. Also, the first day of spring was the next day and she was more than ready to break free all of the winter coats, although she knew it would still be chilly for awhile.<p>

"Why do you look so excited today?" asked Ellie as she joined Cecelia behind the counter, drying off a mug.

Over the past month, she and Ellie had grown to be good friends. "None of your business."

"Are you and Edward going to finally seal-"

Cecelia interrupted. "Say one more scandalous thing about Ed and I and I will pour beer all over your shirt."

Ellie shut up and walked off with a pout on her face.

Cecelia didn't feel any remorse in sending her off. Ellie found great pleasure in teasing Cecelia about her relationship with Ed, jumping to all sorts of conclusions about how she and Ed had made love in the middle of the street or secretly eloped in Xing. Their relationship was nothing like that. Cecelia actually had trouble calling what they had a relationship because they weren't lovey dovey with each other. It was more like they were very good friends who cared deeply for each other. They both shared romantic feelings for one another, but they haven't acted on it because it hasn't been needed. Sure, there would be shameless flirting here and there, but nothing more. They hadn't kissed since the night of Ed's birthday party! Cecelia was okay with the way things were, but the way her heart hammered in her chest when she was with him made her think she was ready a little progression.

She sneezed and it shook her out of her train of thought. Rubbing her head, she went back to work wiping down the counter and making sure that the mugs and dishes were all stocked. As the night wore on, a head ache began to form and grow. By the time she was clocked out and on her way home, Cecelia felt like she'd been hit by a car ten times over.

"Good grief, where did this come from?" she asked quietly.

She hurried home, but the trip felt ten times as long with her head ache. She stumbled inside and groaned, not sure if she could even make it to her bedroom. _You know, the couch is pretty comfy. _She shuffled over to it and plopped down, releasing a happy sigh as she did.

"What took you so long to get home Cecelia?" Ed asked, coming out from his bedroom.

"I got a killer head ache today."

"It must be really bad if it's slowing you down; you don't usually get headaches like this one do you?"

She merely nodded. Ed joined her on the couch and helped her out of her coat, finding it a bit difficult because she was like a limp noodle at that point. With his support, Cecelia managed to pull herself up on her feet and wobble over to her bedroom. Ed stood outside her bedroom while she changed and entered when she gave him the okay. He made sure she got into her bed without any problems before retiring to his own bedroom for the night.

The next morning, despite Cecelia's pleading to the health gods the night before; she was not feeling any better. Actually, she felt a lot worse, but this time her head ache had some competitors in causing her the most discomfort. Every inch of her body was sore in one way or another. She had a sore throat and her mouth was dry, her tongue having the same texture as sand paper and she was pretty sure she was running a fever. Her head was pounding and she felt like she'd fallen down the stairs a few times.

"Oh no… I have an interview today." she moaned.

Cecelia forced herself out of bed and slowly but surely made her way to the shower. She stripped and slipped into the running shower, rinsing off all the sweat that her skin collected over night. She was hoping all of the fumes from the shampoos would stop her runny nose, but instead her nose got all stuffed up. Groaning, she shut off the water, dried off and went to her room. On any other day she would have just stayed in bed, but she couldn't just blow off her interview. She dressed in a cream colored turtle neck sweater and black slacks, leaving her hair down so it could air dry. She shuffled out of her room and to the dining area, collapsing onto a chair.

"I made breakfast today because you weren't feeling well last night." said Ed as entered the dining area with a plate in each hand.

Cecelia stared at her plate of scrambled eggs as if it was skewered rats, but she offered him a small smile. There was nothing wrong with his cooking, just the thought of eating with her throat as sore and raw as it was made her nauseas.

"So how are you feeling today?" he asked.

"I'm feeling a lot better today, I think I just ate something bad at the bar last night." She lied.

"That's good news, you looked terrible yesterday."

"Oh thanks Ed, every girl wants to hear that."

"Well it's true."

She had to stop herself from glaring at him and she took a small bite of her scrambled eggs. It got stuck in her throat and she patted her chest so she could choke it down. _I don't think I can do this. _Luckily for her, Ed excused himself soon after because he was finished with his food and he needed to get ready for work. As soon as he was out of the room, she hurried into the kitchen and shoveled her eggs into the trash can. After she set her dishes in the sink, she went to the couch and lay down, trying to calm the thumping in her head. A good twenty minutes later Ed met her in the living room, bade her good bye and left. Cecelia let her eyes flutter shut and prayed that a good nap would help her with her sickness.

Cecelia woke up a few hours later and didn't feel any better. She sat up and looked up at the clock, her eyes nearly falling out of her head at what she saw. It was one fifteen and her interview was at one thirty. She shot up off the couch, grabbed her portfolio, stuffed her feet into her boots, pulled on her coat and ran out the door. She ran the entire way there and all of the motion made her want to throw up, but she wasn't going to be late. By the time she arrived, her lungs were on fire and her stomach was definitely acting up. Cecelia had to stop and collect herself before she entered the small building; the lights making her head ache worse.

"I'm here to see Mr. Yancey." She said to the secretary.

"Let me go grab him for you."

She nodded and took a seat in the reception area. It took a lot of self control on her part not to pass out right there. Cecelia didn't have to wait long for Mr. Yancey to come out. He collected her and led her back to his office and she put on her best poker face for him because she knew if she didn't look her best, she could kiss that publishing contract goodbye. She handed her portfolio over to him and patiently waited as he read through her book.

"Well Ms. Wheelright this is quite an entertaining little book you have here." He said.

"Thank you sir."

"You illustrated this too?"

"Yes I did."

"Very good, let me look at it again."

He began looking through it again and Cecelia waited. She eyed the cup of water on his desk greedily, wanting to hydrate her coarse throat, but she knew swallowing anything right now would only make her throat hurt. _This is awful, what am I doing getting sick on the first day of spring? This is totally unfair. I feel like I'm going to die right now! _

"Ms. Wheelright."

She turned her direction to him. "I'm sorry, were you saying something?"

"I was just commenting on the cats is all, but are you feeling alright. You're looking a little pale."

She threw out her best smile. "Oh no, I'm perfectly healthy, nothing to worry about here."

The rest of the interview was dreadful. Mr. Yancey kept asking her questions and she had trouble keeping up with them all. The only thing she could focus on was how bad she wanted to go home and sleep. Cecelia was more than pleased when he finished up.

"Thank you for your time Ms. Wheelright, do you mind if I keep your portfolio for a few days?" he asked.

"Absolutely, go ahead."

"Thank you, I'll contact you soon."

He led her to the entrance and she was on her way. Keeping her head down, Cecelia slowly began walking back to the apartment. A trip which would have usually taken her ten minutes took her forty five. She was chilled to the bone by the time she was inside the apartment. Not even bothering to take her coat or boots off, she collapsed onto the couch and fell asleep. 

Ed wore a smile on his face as he walked home that night. Lately he'd been happy go get off work and go home because he knew there was someone at home waiting for him. It was a good feeling. And today he had something important to ask her. Stuffing his hands into his coat pockets, he began to whistle as his apartment building came into view. He started to pick up the pace and in no time at all, he was at his front door.

"Cecelia, I'm ho-"he stopped when he saw her on the couch.

Panic settled into his being and he hurried over to her, rolling her onto her back. He pulled her coat off her and looked her up and down, trying to figure out the reason for her passing out on the couch with her coat and shoes on. Ed placed his hand on her forehead and jerked it back.

"She's burning up."

He hurried over to the phone and dialed the number for his brother, nearly hurling the receiver against the wall when the operator started being difficult.

"Brother, what's going on?" asked Al when he was finally put through. "It's kind of late over here."

"Sorry Al but I need your help, Cecelia has a really high fever and I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do."

"Well I'm not really a doctor…"

"Come on Al please, you've got to know something."

"I guess I know a few things that may help."

Ed listened diligently as Al listed off a few things he should do to help bring down her fever. He thanked him and hung up the phone, directing his attention back to the sick girl on his couch. Sliding two hands under her, he lifted her up and carried her into her bedroom, making sure she didn't hit her head as he passed through the door frame. Ed carefully laid her on the bed and pulled the covers around her, swaddling her in the blankets.

"Hopefully she'll sweat it out."

He went to the kitchen and pulled down a bowl from the cabinet. Ed filled it with cold water, grabbed a few hand towels and returned to Cecelia's room. He pulled a seat over to the side of her bed and got to work. He dipped a towel in the water, rung out the excess water, folded it and placed it on her forehead. Sighing, he brushed a few stray pieces of hair off of her face.

"I knew you didn't look right this morning…" he said.

He watched her for awhile, but boredom soon settled and he left briefly to pick out a book to read. Ed returned to his seat by her bed and began reading, occasionally pausing to trade out the towels. As the night went on, he set his book on the floor and after taking hold of her hand, he fell asleep.

Cecelia's eyes slowly opened and she was confused. _I wasn't in my room earlier… _She noticed something move out of the corner of her eye and she was surprised to see Ed there. He was holding her hand and fast asleep in a chair. She smiled softly and with her free hand, reached up and brushed his bangs out of his face. _He looks so peaceful. _The movement caused him to stir and soon she was staring into his golden eyes which seemed more vibrant than usual from the moonlight pouring in through the window.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you." she whispered, her voice hoarse.

He sat up and stretched, discomfort evident on his face from the uncomfortable position.

"No it's alright. You scared me though; you were just passed out on the couch."

"I didn't mean to." she mumbled.

"Why didn't you tell me you weren't feeling well? I would have stayed home with you today."

"I didn't want you to worry and I had to run an errand today."

He sighed. "Cecelia, will you please tell me next time so I can take care of you?"

"I promise I will."

Ed smiled before leaning forward to rest his head against the bed. They were both quiet for awhile until Ed remembered what he was going to ask her.

"Oh and Cecelia, would now be a bad time to ask you to go steady with me?" he asked without lifting his head.

She turned her head to look at him, shock evident on her face. _I-Is he asking me…to be his g-girl friend? _

"No…this would be a perfect time."

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><p>How adorable! Haha, well please drop a review if you can and I'll see you all next chapter!<p> 


	23. Chapter 23

Open Up

Oh my gosh! I got my 100th review today and it was sooo exciting! Thanks you guys for reading and sticking with this story! You're the best. Well, I hope you all enjoy!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia, Ellie and Gretchen

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><p>The next day was hard on Cecelia. She was as sick as a dog and could hardly move without wanting to throw up, but thanks to Ed she didn't have to do much moving. Before he went to work he would leave her with a container of food, a pitcher of water with a glass and a stack of books to read. When he came home he was constantly at her side to keep her company. He didn't mind the sound of her calling him Dr. Elric either.<p>

"You know, it's kind of catchy." He said one night.

"What is?" she asked.

"Dr. Elric, it sounds so suave. I can hear it now, nurses running down the hallway calling my name. 'Paging Dr. Elric, you're needed in the operating room."

Cecelia sighed and rubbed her head. "Oh no, I've inflated your ego by calling you that and turned you into a pig headed ego maniac, what am I going to do with myself?"

"Hey, I'm not pigheaded and that's what would happen if I were a doctor, nurses would be lining up to be my assistant." He reached over and tickled her side, earning a girlish squeal from his victim.

"Cut it out you troll, I don't want to hear about nurses falling at your feet." She chided.

"Me neither, you're the only nurse I want." He quipped, showing off his cheekiest grin.

She blushed and rolled over on her side, but knew he'd already seen the bright red color that graced her face. He got up from his chair and leaned over her, planting a kiss on her temple before sitting back down. Cecelia smiled and turned back to face him.

"You're lucky you're cute or else I would have clocked you already."

"What can I say? It's all a part of my charm."

Ed and Cecelia spent the rest of the night arguing about Ed's future in the medical field, she finally had to send him to his room because she wouldn't let him stay in her room with the fear of him getting sick. She got a good night's sleep that night, but when she woke up the next morning, she was quite displeased with her dream. It was of Ed wearing only a doctor's coat and pants, parading around Central with hoards of women chasing after him. Feeling a lot better that morning, she rolled out of bed and immediately took a shower, washing off all of the sweat and grime that she'd collected. After she was bathed and dressed in fresh clothes, Cecelia went to the kitchen and got started on breakfast. For the past two days she'd been living off broth and water, she was craving real food. She fished out the carton of eggs, cheese, spinach, and mushrooms from the ice bin and got to work on spinach and mushroom omelets. Just as Cecelia started combining the grated cheese with the egg mixture, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her middle.

"What are you making?" he breathed, resting his chin on her head.

"Breakfast."

He huffed. "I can see that, I meant what are we having for breakfast."

"Spinach and Mushroom omelets."

Ed grimaced and disengaged himself from his girlfriend. "That doesn't sound very good."

Cecelia turned to face him, the bowl in her arms as she whisked everything together. "Oh hush, it's really good I promise."

She returned her attention to the stove and poured half of the egg mix into the heated pan, it sizzled upon contact. Ed watched her cook over her shoulder, impressed with her steady hands as she added the vegetables and folded the pancake looking egg into an omelet. He handed her a plate as she lifted the omelet with the spatula and she served it up. Ed waited until she was done with the second omelet before grabbing silverware and heading to the dining area. They both sat down and dug in, Cecelia letting out a delighted moan after her first bite.

"Real food is so good." She said in between bites.

"Speaking of which, how are you feeling today Cecelia?" he asked.

"I'm definitely feeling a lot better, my throat is still a little sore but it's nothing I can't handle."

"That's good news, it's because I was your doctor right?"

She waved her fork at him. "Don't start with that again; I already had to see you only wearing a doctor coat and pants in my dream."

"Oh ho, you were dreaming about me shirtless were you?" he waggled his eyebrows and struck a seductive pose which only made her laugh and choke on her breakfast.

After Ed's seduction attempt, they returned to their meal and finished it up in peace. While she worked on cleaning up, Ed went and got ready for work. When he was clean and dressed, he pulled on a light jacket and joined Cecelia in the kitchen, drying the dishes while she washed.

"Shouldn't you be heading out soon Ed?" she asked after they'd finished putting away the now clean dishes.

"I guess I'll go to work." He groaned, sheepishly dragging his feet across the floor as he went.

Cecelia chuckled before gearing her hand back and landing a good slap on his butt. He jumped and shot her a dirty look, she retaliated by standing on her tip toes and kissing him.

"Have a good day at work."

Ed smiled and patted her head before walking out the door. Cecelia sighed and looked around the apartment trying to find something to do. Madame Christmas had given her a few days off for recovery and now Cecelia was left with nothing to do. As she was getting ready to return to her bedroom and grab the book she'd been reading, the phone rang and she was quick to answer it.

"Hello, this is Cecelia Wheelright."

"Ah Ms Wheelright, this is Mr. Yancey from Harmon Publishing."

Cecelia nearly dropped the phone, but managed to keep her grip on it. "Oh hello Mr. Yancey, what do I owe for the phone call?"

"Well I have a colleague here with me and we would like to review your book, is there any way you could come down to the office?"

"Absolutely, what time would you like?"

"How about right now?"

"Sure, I'll leave right away."

"Then I will see you soon Ms. Wheelright."

As soon as she hung up the phone, Cecelia let out a happy squeal and hurried to the front door, stepping into her boots and pulling on Ed's red jacket. She made sure everything was intact before leaving the apartment. The air was warmer than usual and this only added to her excitement. It was still fairly cold, but the weather today was an improvement to the cold weather she'd grown used to in Central.

"Oh spring how I love you so." She said as she walked.

Cecelia had to stop herself from sprinting and the walk to the Harmon building seemed excruciatingly long, but after ten minutes or so she arrived. The secretary recognized her from when she'd been there a few days earlier and led her to Mr. Yancey's office.

"Ah there you are Cecelia, good seeing you again." He said, getting up from his desk to shake her hand.

Cecelia smiled and nodded before noticing the small little boy sitting in a chair in front of Mr. Yancey's dress. He looked very similar to the older man and she figured he was the latter's son. A few seconds later he confirmed her thought.

"I'd like you to meet my colleague, my son Daniel."

She greeted him and the boy merely smiled.

"I figured since you are trying to get a children's book published, what better way to see how it will do than have a child judge it."

"What a good idea." She said, taking a seat in the chair next to Daniel's.

Mr. Yancey pulled her portfolio from his desk, extracted her book and passed it on to the small boy who grabbed it up in earnest. Cecelia watched anxiously as the boy read, it was hard to tell what he thought because he was keeping a straight face. By the time he'd finished, Cecelia was about ready to pee her pants because she was so nervous.

Daniel looked from the book to his father. "I like it daddy."

Cecelia let out a relieved sigh while Mr. Yancey clapped. "Very good, well Ms. Wheelright this is a good sign. I'm going to run this book by my actual colleagues and we'll be contacting you within the week with our final decision."

She stood and grabbed his hand, giving it an eager shake. "I promise you won't regret this Mr. Yancey, thank you so much."

After giving him one more firm hand shake, she said goodbye to Daniel and left the building.

"Yes, finally my big chance!" she cried when she was outside, causing people to look at her weird.

She started on her way home, humming a cheery tune and thinking about her potential publishing deal when she saw a familiar head of blond hair across the street.

"Oh Gret-" she stopped midsentence after seeing who was accompanying her friend.

_It's that guy from Ed's party, the one with the cigarette. _

Cecelia eyed the pair as they walked; the man was wearing a big smile; this baffled Cecelia seeing as he kept his cigarette in his mouth and Gretchen seemed happy. She had a whisper of a smile. Cecelia watched them until they walked out of her view before she returned to her route home. _Hmm… that's odd, she said she didn't know him. _She decided to discuss the matter with Ellie the next time she saw her. Cecelia ended up back at the apartment around lunch time and spent the rest of her day washing the bed sheets and blankets from her room and munching on celery sticks. When Ed came home, she had a tidy and disinfected room.

"Ed you'll never believe what happened today." She said, running over to him and jumping into his open arms.

He spun her around, careful not to hit her against a wall before setting her down. "Tell me."

"I got a call from the publishing company I was telling you about and they said they would call me next week and tell me if they're going to publish my book."

"That's fantastic news; do you think you'll make it?"

"I sure hope so; I've been working on this forever."

He nodded and led her into the living room. That night Ed rewarded her for her publishing accomplishment by making dinner. After cleaning up they both sat at the table playing cards and flicking tokens at each other until it was time for bed.

"Hey Cecelia, after we find out about your book and stuff, what do you say about going to Resembool with me?" he asked outside her bedroom.

"Sure that would be fun, we haven't seen Winry in awhile and I bet Madame Christmas wouldn't mind if I said I was going with you, she seems to have taken a liking to you."

"I'm not into older women Cecelia and you're my girlfriend now, you can't just pawn me off to-"he was interrupted by her elbow ramming into his gut.

"Ed hush, that's gross." She shivered. "Anyway, I would love to go to Resembool with you."

Ed rubbed his now sore stomach. "That's good, but I'm not taking you if you're going to hit me like that, you have a hard elbow."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh you'll be okay; I'm sure you can use your Dr. Elric skills and fix it, now I'm going to go to bed."

Cecelia got up on her toes and gave him a light kiss, then sauntered into her room and climbed into bed. She was happy with today's events, but what played with her thoughts was why Ed wanted her to go to Resembool with him. _I guess I'll have to find out. _With that final thought, she let sleep take her away.

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><p>Oh boy. Well I hope you all liked it and please drop a review if you can. See you in the next chapter!<p> 


	24. Chapter 24

Open Up

Oh boy a new chapter! I hope everyone likes this one and there will be an update tomorrow for sure. I already have the next chapter typed up, but I didn't want to do two updates in one day. Enjoy!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia, Ellie, and Gretchen

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><p>The next morning Cecelia woke up feeling good and sore throat free. She could tell already that she would be having another fine day. She pulled herself out of bed and stretched like a cat just waking up from a nap, and let out a small yawn. As she went to open the door, she could hear Ed's muffled voice from the other side. Wanting to surprise him, she quietly pulled the door open and tiptoed her way towards the living room but stopped in her tracks when she heard what he was saying.<p>

"Oh come on Winry, you know I love you too… will you please just calm down?"

Cecelia stood there in the hallway with her mouth gaping. She was stunned to say the least.

"I told you I would be in Resembool didn't I? We're going to head out as soon as Cecelia finds out about her book… Winry don't worry about her okay? Alright, I'll talk to you soon."

She hurried back into her room before he could turn around and see her. She jumped back into her bed and crawled underneath the cover.

"Oh my gosh… he still loves her," she had to pause to blink away tears, "he only asked me to be with him as a rebound for Winry… why didn't she tell me she still loved him?"

Cecelia couldn't talk anymore because her voice began to quiver and she didn't want to start sobbing. She wasn't a pretty sight when she cried, but she couldn't staunch the flow of tears that began making their way down her cheeks. She quickly wiped them away.

"Pull yourself together Cecelia, it's not that big of a deal… it's not like you've been with him for a long time… yeah it's only been three days. That's not anything at all and besides, he and Winry are perfect for each other…what kind of friend would you be if you got in the way of that?"

Her little pep talk did nothing to cheer her up. She pulled the blanket off of her head and frowned, looking around her little room. Cecelia nodded before getting up and pulling her suitcase out from underneath the bed. With absolutely no organization, she began piling all of her clothes and personal items in her bag, not stopping until the room was bare of her things. She zipped up her bag and dragged it out into the living room.

"Oh good morning Cecelia, how did you sleep?" Ed asked from the couch.

Hearing his voice only made it harder for her not to cry, but it also infuriated her that he was leading her on when the entire time he was longing for his mechanic. Cecelia ignored him and made her way to the door. She started pulling on her coat, but before she could get her right arm through the sleeve, a hand landed on her shoulder.

"Cecelia what are you doing, why do you have your stuff?"

She pulled her arm free and got her coat on. "I have to go Ed."

"Where are you going?"

"Home." She said while stepping into her boots.

"But why? Did I do something wrong?"

His question shook her down to the core. _If only you knew what I heard._ She didn't want to leave him on bad terms so she decided against confronting him on the matter. Instead she pulled open the front door, but turned to him just as she was ready to take her first step outside.

"Good luck with Winry and I hope you both have a good life together, you deserve each other." She said with a sad smile before walking out the door.

Cecelia ignored him calling her name as she walked down the bare streets that chilly March morning. She didn't care that she was still in her pajamas; she just had to get out of there before she started to break down into a sad sobbing mess. She had to think about where the train station was, but after getting lost once she made it to her destination. The ticket booth window had just opened up when she arrived.

"Please, I need the earliest train to Rush Valley." She gasped.

The old man behind the booth simply nodded and began looking through his charts.

"The earliest train to Rush Valley doesn't depart until one thirty this afternoon." He said.

"I'll take it."

She practically threw her money at him when he told her the price and after she was paid and ready to go; she hastily snatched up her ticket and took a seat at a bench. It was only seven in the morning so she would be sitting there for awhile, giving her plenty of time to lament on the events the morning.

_I did the right thing didn't I? How could those two come together if I was in the way? _

It sounded fine and dandy in her head, but her heart was screaming for her to go back and talk about it, but her stubbornness wouldn't let her. She spent the next few hours dozing off until finally a conductor came and announced that the train to Rush Valley was no boarding. Anxious to get on the warm train, she picked up her suitcase and dragged it over to the ticket taker, tapping her foot impatiently as he checked her ticket and when she got the okay she stepped up into the train and slid into the first bench she saw. Cecelia looked out the window and pressed her hand against the chilled glass.

"Bye bye Central."

It took no time at all for the train to pull out of the station and soon they were on their way to Rush Valley. When Central was out of view, Cecelia finally let herself begin to cry earning her weird looks from the people sitting around her. She did her best to quiet, lowering down the volume of her sobs until they came out as pathetic whimpers and she kept her gaze towards the window so no one would have to see her tear stained face. Later around dinner time when the train arrived in Rush Valley, she got off the train and despite the hunger that was gnawing at her, she went straight home, banging on the door until her mother answered when she arrived. Confusion came onto Lisa Wheelright's face.

"Cecelia sweetheart, what are you doing out here?"

"Mama…" she whimpered before throwing herself into her mom's arms and she broke down crying. 

Ed stood in his living area shocked that Cecelia had just left him. He couldn't figure out what he did to make her want to leave and the 'good luck with Winry' bit threw him off. He didn't want a relationship with Winry, they tried it once and it was a disaster, he wanted to be with Cecelia. Ed went over to her room and frowned, the room was bare other than the things he'd already had in there. All traces of her were gone. He slammed his fist against the wall.

"Dammit, what happened?"

Needing some outside help, he went to the phone and dialed the number for Al, impatiently waiting until they put him through to his little brother.

"You know Ed, the people here are starting to wonder why you call me all the time, they said that you were a girl and Ed was just a cover name." Al teased.

_ "Alphonse, Cecelia is gone." Ed said, getting straight to the point._

"W-what, what do you mean she's gone?"

"She just got up this morning and left. She wouldn't tell me anything when I asked why she was leaving, all she said was that I deserved Winry and that she was only getting in the way, I don't know where she pulled that from."

"I can't see Cecelia just getting up and leaving without a really good reason, did you do anything to set her off?"

"Not that I know of, I mean a few days ago I asked her to be with me and last night I wanted her to come to Resembool with for a visit. I called Winry this morning to tell her that we were going to come in soon and then Cecelia was just gone. I don't even think she called Madame Christmas or her potential publisher that she was leaving."

"Oh man, that is confusing. I'm not sure what to tell you Ed, but I will ask what you're going to do about this."

"Well I don't know, she obviously doesn't want anything to do with me."

Alphonse sighed. "Oh come on Ed, you were the youngest state alchemist in history and you can't even see something this simple?"

"I don't need you patronizing me Al." he mumbled.

"You've got to go after her! I mean you really like her don't you?"

"Well I mean, yeah I do…"

"Then you need to go get her back, it's that simple."

"I guess it wouldn't hurt, thanks Al and I'll talk to you later."

"Good luck brother and don't mess this up."

The brothers hung up the phone and Ed sighed. He wanted to leave right away, but he couldn't blow off work so he hastily packed his suitcase so he could leave right when he got off before going off to Mr. Winter's office. Ed couldn't focus; he even spilled a chemical on his notes, but eventually the end of the work day came near. He informed Mr. Winter's that he would be gone for a few days due to personal reasons before heading off to the train station. Ed marched right up to the ticket man when he arrived and asked for the first train to Rush Valley.

"You know, you're the second person today to ask for the first trip to Rush Valley." said the old man as he took Ed's money.

"Was it a short young woman with brown hair?"

"Actually it was, she was in her pajamas still and waited for a good four hours until her train, is she your girl?"

Ed rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah."

"Well you must have done something really stupid to send her running for the hills like that." The man said, handing Ed his ticket.

Ed frowned.

"Anyway you'd better get on the train; it's leaving in about five minutes. You've got good timing and good luck kid."

Ed nodded and had to run to catch his train. He shoved his ticket into the ticket takers hand and hopped onto the train, sitting on the first bench he saw. In no time he was on his way to Rush Valley. _Damn, it's going to be too late in the night to go see her when I arrive; I guess I'll have to wait until tomorrow. _Ed had to order a cheap meal from the food cart that eventually came down the aisle, it was hard to choke down but he managed to eat it and appease his grumbling stomach.

He napped for the most of the train ride and after a four hour ride, he was in Rush Valley. The town usually bustling with automail enthusiasts, was quiet as it was around eleven p.m. Ed wandered around until he found an inn and paid for a room. When he got inside his room, he dropped his suitcase and collapsed on the stiff bed. As he started to drift off, he tried racking through his brain to figure out what upset Cecelia, but came up with nothing.

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><p>See you all tomorrow! Please drop a review if you're able.<p> 


	25. Chapter 25

Open Up

Okay so I gave in and posted this right now. I have no self control, but I did shorten it by a lot and moved the Resembool visit to the chapter that will get posted tomorrow. So at least you'll get another update! I hope you all like it.

Typical disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecela and etc.

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><p>The next morning Cecelia could hardly drag herself out of bed. She didn't get very much sleep the night before because the events from the last morning kept replaying in her head. <em>I think I was a little bit hasty about leaving…maybe I should call him and we can talk about it. <em>She rolled out of bed and made her way downstairs, but just as she was about to pick up the phone, her mother called her in for breakfast. Cecelia took a seat at the dining room table as her mother walked in with a plate stacked high with blueberry pancakes.

"Yum my favorite, thanks mom." she said as she filled her plate.

"Anything for my baby," Lisa sat across from her daughter, "so Cecelia how are you feeling today?"

"I feel better; I probably should have talked everything out with Ed though."

"That would have been a good idea, but I don't mind having you home either."

Cecelia rolled her eyes and continued to eat her food. She was starting to feel bad about the way she stormed out of Ed's apartment after he'd graciously let her stay with him. _It's not like he was in love with me anyway... he said he loved Winry. _The doorbell rang just as she'd taken a bite from her second pancake. She swallowed it before getting up to answer the door. Cecelia pulled the door open and her jaw nearly dropped to the floor, there was the man who'd kept her up through most of the night. She anxiously started pushing him off the stoop.

"No no no, you can't be here. You've got to go Ed."

But he didn't go far. "No way, I want to talk to you Cecelia. What happened yesterday?"

She cringed. "It's nothing, I just needed to go and you need to go back home. You shouldn't be here; it's not fair to Winry."

She had to push him away despite her heart's protests.

"What are you talking about? What's not fair to Winry?" he asked, getting his footing together so he wouldn't lose his balance.

"You can't be seeing me if you're with her." she snapped.

"That's what I don't get, I'm not with Winry anymore, I'm with you!"

Cecelia stopped trying to push him and frowned. "But yesterday morning I heard you tell Winry that you loved her."

Ed blinked and simply stared down at her before laughing out loud. Cecelia stood there shocked and embarrassed as her bottom lip began to quiver and her hazel eyes brimmed with angry tears. He saw the upset look on her face and quieted his laughter down to a chuckle.

"Oh Cecelia you silly little troll."

He pulled her into his arms despite her pounding his chest with her fists. Ed hugged her tight before holding her arms length away. The tears were freely flowing down her face now and he reached down to wipe a tear away, but she swatted his hand.

"You've got it all wrong Cecelia, that wasn't real at all."

"What do you mean?"

"I called Winry yesterday to tell her that I was taking you to Resembool to show you something important and as a joke she said you were taking me away. I was only playing along Cecelia; you're the one I want to be with."

Her eyes grew wide as she processed this new information. Immediately she felt ashamed of herself and she ducked her head down, hiding behind her hair. Ed tucked it behind her ear and tipped her head up. Her cheeks were damp and flushed and her eyes were red from the tears, but he couldn't help but think she looked beautiful.

"I…I'm so sorry Ed."

He pulled her back into a hug and just let her cry, tracing circles on her back with his index finger until she began to calm down. Even though it'd only been a day since he'd seen her last, it felt like weeks and he didn't want to let her go, but when clapping came from inside the house they pulled apart. Lisa Wheelright stood there with her husband in tow.

"How wonderful, I knew I liked you Edward."

Cecelia's father simply huffed before stalking back into the house. The three of them followed suit and ended up at the dining room table. Although it wasn't proper, Ed sat next to Cecelia. After getting Lisa's blessing to eat, he piled his plate with pancakes and dug in while everyone else finished the food they'd already had. Cecelia parents left midway through the meal, leaving Ed and Cecelia alone. She pushed her food around on her plate with her fork.

"Ed…I feel really bad about what happened."

He chuckled and shook his head. "It was a misunderstanding, that's all. You needed to visit your parents anyway so it was a gift in disguise, but next time maybe we could talk about it before you go storming out because train tickets can be expensive."

She stuck her tongue out at him but nodded. "I can live with that."

Ed and Cecelia cleared the table after breakfast and cleaned up all the dishes. After finding out he was staying at an inn, Cecelia insisted that he stay at her house and they left to pick up his stuff and bring it back. As they were walking he brought up Resembool.

"So Cecelia, are you still interested in coming to my hometown?"

"Of course I am and I promise I won't run off, didn't you say you wanted to show me something important?"

"Yes I did."

"Well what is it?"

"None of your business, you'll see it when we get there."

She pouted, but didn't fight him on it. She'd already caused enough issues for the week. While they were walking to the house, they dropped by the train station and picked up tickets for Resembool. They spent the rest of the day socializing with Cecelia's parents and soon night fell and they retreated to their separate rooms because they had an early morning the next day.

"Oh wait Cecelia, one last thing." Ed said, catching her by the arm before she could slip into her bedroom.

"Hm?"

He cupped her cheek and kissed her. "I just wanted to let you know that I would never deceive you like you thought."

"I know you wouldn't, I just … got overwhelmed."

"Well now you know so you'll never have to worry about it again."

He kissed her one more time before leaving and going to his own room, leaving her standing there with a smile. She went to her own bedroom, changed into fresh pajamas and went to bed, excited for what Ed had in store for her in Resembool.

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><p>Short and sweet, I'm not a fan of conflicts. Any who, see you all tomorrow and leave a review if you can!<p> 


	26. Chapter 26

Open Up

Oh boy, three updates in two days. That's pretty good if I do say so myself. Anyway, I hope you all like this chapter.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>The next morning Cecelia and Ed were up early. They ate breakfast with her parents before heading off to the station where a train to Resembool was waiting. After they'd handed over their tickets, the pair found a comfortable little booth at the end of the train cart they'd chosen and got situated for the trip. In no time they were on their way and by early afternoon they'd reached their destination. Ed led her off the train and out of the train depot.<p>

"So where are we going first?" she asked as they walked down the path towards town.

"Well first we're going to go drop our stuff off at Winry's house and then I've got something really important to show you."

Cecelia nodded and let Ed take the lead. With his expert navigation, they got to Winry's in record time. Ed knocked on the front door once before barging in. As he took his first step something hard and metal collided with his head and he fell backwards. Cecelia blinked before poking her head inside to see Winry with her hands on her hips. Cecelia stepped over Ed and hurried inside to give the mechanic a hug.

"What the hell was that for Winry?" he hissed as he got up, rubbing his sore head.

"Well what did you expect? I'm going to get defensive when someone just walks into my house like that." she snapped.

"You probably gave me a mechanic you gear head!"

"Oh get over it, I bet your thick head barely got a dent."

Ed started to grumble about incoherent things before going outside to grab his and Cecelia's suitcases.

"Anyway, you guys are welcome to the guest rooms. I'd stay and talk with you guys, but I've got a big order to finish and I know Ed wanted to show you something today so I don't want to keep you guys."

"Ed told you what he was showing me?"

"He sure did, I'm letting you know now though that it's really important to him so I wouldn't joke around while you're there.

Cecelia gulped. "Alright I won't."

"Okay well I'll see you guys when you get back." Winry said before retreating to her work room.

Cecelia went out and helped Ed with the bags, taking up to their rooms. When everything was taken care Ed took her back outside and they started to walk. They walked in silence and part way through their trip, Cecelia placed her hand in the crook of Ed's elbow. Everything around them was so pleasant. The sky was a bright blue with fluffy clouds and all of the plants were starting to sprout again. Even though it was a tiny bit chilly, she was comfortable in her light jacket. A quiet cemetery came into her line of vision and the closer they got to it, the more puzzled she became. _Why are we going to a cemetery? _They passed under the cemetery's arch and Cecelia looked up at Ed, his face was blank and he would only look forward. They went to one of the first tomb stones and Ed stuffed his hands in his pockets. Cecelia read the engraving.

_Trisha Elric_

"Edward…" she started, but she didn't know what else to say.

"I've met your parents, so I figured you should see mine."

He gestured to the next tomb stone over and it read 'Van Hohenheim'. Cecelia squatted down and looked between the two tombstones. Ed never really spoke about his father, the only thing she really knew about him was that he'd fathered Ed and that he had something to do with the country wide black out. She stood back up and moved so that she was in front of him.

"You know Ed, your mom and dad are watching you from heaven," she pointed up towards the sky, "and I know they're really proud of you."

Ed simply nodded and looked at the two tomb stones. He'd never brought anyone; other than Al, Winry and Pinako, to see his parents' grave, so bringing Cecelia here with him was a big moment for him. He'd been nervous about it, but in the end he was glad to have done so. He watched as she reached down and ran her fingers across the smooth granite of his mother's grave, tracing over the carefully written name.

"She would have liked you." said Ed after awhile.

"From what you've told me, I bet she was a great woman."

"Yeah…she was."

Cecelia stood back up and curled her arms around Ed's middle, his arms naturally wrapping around her smaller form. They held onto each other for awhile, taking comfort in the embrace. Eventually Ed let her go and she offered him a small smile. Lacing her fingers with his, she began walking towards the cemetery's arch.

"Let's go, it's getting late."

In the same manor that they'd come, Ed and Cecelia walked back to the Rockbell house in silence. When they walked inside, the strong scent of beef hit them and their mouth's instantly watered. The only lunch they had eaten was a crummy sandwich on the train. Pinako ordered Cecelia to help Winry finish up dinner while Ed had to set the table. Dinner at the Rockbell was enjoyable, all of the females ganging up on Ed and teasing him. When the meal was finished, they even made him clear and wash the dishes which he grudgingly did, mumbling about how cruel women were. While Ed was cleaning the dishes, Cecelia and Winry sat in the living room to catch up.

"So do you want to hear a funny story?" Cecelia started.

"Sure."

"Well I almost didn't come today. Two days ago I overhead Ed talking to you on the phone and he said that he loved you. I freaked out, packed my bags and went home and then the next day he shoes up during breakfast and told me it was a joke. I felt so bad and I was really embarrassed."

Winry couldn't help but laugh at her friend. "Oh I would never date Ed again, he's too-"

"Watch what you say Winry." Ed called from the kitchen.

"He's a fat pig who needs to finish up with those dishes!" she answered.

The girls chatted about what they were up to until Ed arrived, complaining about how his fingers looked like prunes. The young adults spent the rest of the night chatting about gossip around town and Winry made sure to get all of the details on Ed's relationship with Cecelia. The blond mechanic was the first to excuse herself for bed and Ed and Cecelia soon followed suit. He kissed her forehead before going off to bed. Cecelia went to her room, but she had no intentions of going to bed. She had something she wanted to do before going to sleep. She waited around for a good half an hour to make sure everyone had gone to bed before tiptoeing out of her room and down the stairs. She stepped into her shoes and as quietly as she could, slipped outside. It was certainly a cold night, but it wasn't anything she couldn't manage. As she started on her walk, she made a quick stop at a small patch of mums she'd seen as she and Ed walked to Winry's. Cecelia gathered a good pile of the small flowers and separated them into two piles. Pulling off a stray piece of thread from her jacket, she tied the flowers into two little bouquets before getting back on track. It took her longer than it took Ed to get to the cemetery, but she managed it. She went straight to Ed's parent's graves and set a bouquet on each one.

"Thank you Trisha and thank you Hohenhiem for bringing a great man into this world."

Cecelia took a seat on the grass and stared at the granite markers. She pressed the fingers on her right hand against her lips before leaning forward to run her fingers across Hohenhiem's grave and then she did the same thing for Trisha's.

"He's been doing a lot of great things, he's been working for this nice man as his assistant. He does things with science, finding out what sorts of stuff make up everything in the world and recording it. And he just turned twenty one last month, it was a really great party and I could tell he was having fun, I wish you two could have been there to see it."

Cecelia spent the next hour just talking about all the things she'd learned about Ed in the four months she'd known him. She talked about the first time they'd met and how he took care of her when she was sick. As she began to tire, she stood up and said one last thing.

"I just want you two to know that I'm going to take care of your son, I promise you that."

She smiled down at the two tombstones before turning on her heel and leaving. Her body was chilled to the bone, but she didn't care because her heart felt all warm. Even though she wasn't physically speaking to them, she'd still felt something. Like they were listening to her from wherever they were. Cecelia quietly reentered the house and went to her room. She kicked off her shoes and crawled into bed, falling asleep with a soft smile.

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><p>It was short and sweet, but I think it was an important chapter. I hope you all liked it and drop a review if you can. See you next time.<p> 


	27. Chapter 27

Open Up

Sorry for not updating in awhile! So this chapter is just a funny little filler and the plot will get back on track next chapter, I promise! I hope you all enjoy!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia and crew.

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><p>Edward woke up the next morning feeling energized and refreshed. He sat up and looked out the window, the morning sun was bright and shining and for the first time in awhile it actually looked like a spring day. He got out of bed and went through his morning routine, showering, combing and braiding his hair, and getting dressed. When he was finished, with a bit of pep in his step, he left his room and without knocking entered Cecelia's. His mouth was open ready to call her name, but he stopped himself after catching a glimpse of her sleeping figure. She was curled up in bed with half of her blanket on the floor. He sighed with a small smile on his face before going over and readjusting her blanket. Ed patted her head lightly and left her to sleep, going downstairs where Winry sat sipping at a mug of coffee.<p>

"Morning Ed."

She pushed a plate of food to him and he dug in.

"What are your plans for today?" she asked.

"I don't know, I took her to the cemetery yesterday." He said after he swallowed his food.

"You know, I haven't been out there in awhile…do you mind going with me?"

Ed shrugged and worked on finishing up his food while Winry went and retrieved their jackets. He shoveled down the rest of his meal before pulling on his shoes and getting his jacket. When they were both ready, Winry stepped outside and Ed followed behind her. They walked in silence for awhile before Winry spoke up.

"How did Cecelia take everything?"

"Well I mean it went well, she didn't freak out if that's what you're thinking. It was nice; I just wish they were here to meet her."

Winry patted his shoulder. "Yeah, when I get married I won't have anyone to walk me down the aisle, but our parents died good people, we shouldn't be sad."

"You know Winry; I could always walk you down the aisle if you wanted."

"That's sweet of you but I think I'd rather have Al walk me." She teased.

He shot her a confused look.

"He would look better in the pictures."

Ed shoved her half heartedly and rolled his eyes. "Whatever, my sense of style is way better than Al's is."

"Oh please, you'd end up wearing an animal print tux if I let you."

"What's wrong with animal prints?"

Ed and Winry argued the entire way to the cemetery, but their banter was cut off when they arrived at Ed's parent's graves. Ed squatted down and examined the small bouquet of mums that were not there the day before. He looked up at Winry who simply shrugged.

"Do you think Cecelia did it?" she asked.

"She may have, but we both went to bed kind of late last night…in separate rooms you pervert." he said after seeing the sly look on Winry's face.

"Well you'll have to ask her later, I'm gonna go and see my parents so I'll see you in a bit."

Ed turned back to his parent's grave and sighed softly. He hadn't been to their graves by himself in awhile and he was feeling a little guilty.

"Hey mom…hey erm…dad."

A few years ago he'd finally come to terms and began acknowledging Hohenheim as his father.

"It's been awhile and I'm still living in Central, working on chemistry things. I brought a girl here yesterday, her name is Cecelia Wheelright. If you all were here I'm sure you'd love her…she wants to be a children's author and I like her… I like her a lot."

He trailed off and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Al's doing well for himself. He's still in Xing but he said that he was close to being done with his studies, he's been there for at least four years so he'll be back soon, I'm not sure if he's with a woman but I know of a certain Xingese girl that has her eye out for him… you remember May right?"

Ed sat there and talked for a good half an hour. When he ran out of things to say, he simply sat there and relaxed. It was nice just getting to sort of reconnect with his parents and it helped that the weather was getting better. After he said his goodbyes, Ed got up and made his way over to Winry who was kneeling in front of her parent's grave. He rested a hand on her shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"Let's go home."

Without another word, the two childhood friends left the cemetery and made their way back to Winry's house. They got there in no time and all and after taking off his jacket and shoes, Ed went into to the kitchen and was greeted by a tired looking Cecelia. He couldn't help but laugh at her. Her typically tame brown waves were a tangled mess and she had this dazed look in her eyes. Despite her pout, Ed reached over and wiped a stray crumb that stuck to the corner of her mouth with his finger.

"Morning, how did you sleep?" he asked while taking a seat.

"I slept well, I didn't mean to sleep in so late."

He looked at the clock, it was ten thirty.

"That's not very late at all."

"It's late for normal people."

He feigned shock. "Are you saying I'm not normal?"

"Yes." said Cecelia and Winry in unison.

Ed frowned at the two laughing young women and groaned.

"Women are such a hassle."

Winry threw a hand towel at him and it landed on his head. He let it fall into his lap and glared at the blond mechanic. Winry rolled her eyes before retreating to her workroom. Ed watched as Cecelia stood up and washed her plate from breakfast.

"You know, you look like a troll when you get out of bed." he pointed out.

"You always look like a troll." She quipped.

"But I'm a cute troll."

Cecelia chuckled and patted his chest as she walked past him. "You go ahead and think that Ed."

He chased her up the stairs and tried following her into her room but she slammed the door in his face.

"Hey!"

"Quit stalking me you peeping Tom." She chided from the other side.

"I'm your boyfriend, not a peeping Tom."

Cecelia opened the door enough to poke her head out and stick her tongue out at him before shutting the door again. He chuckled lightly before going back downstairs to the kitchen.

"Ed I need you to go take Den on a walk." Called Winry from her work room.

"Ed will you get me a towel? I won't call you a peeping Tom anymore." Cecelia yelled.

Ed groaned and shook his head.

"These women are going to be the death of me."

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><p>Haha I literally laughed out loud while I was writing this. Well I'll see you all next chapter which will be up soon and please drop a review if you can!<p> 


	28. Chapter 28

Open Up

I'm such a terrible student. Instead of working on my College Prep homework, I wrote this instead. But I really like it so oh well! I hope you all enjoy reading as much as I did writing! And sorry, I had to edit this because of a spelling error. Thanks **Roseia **for pointing it out!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia, Ellie, and Gretchen.

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><p>After spending a week in Resembool, Ed and Cecelia headed back home to Central. They were both sad to go, but they both had work to take care of and Cecelia was missing Ellie and Gretchen. Their train arrived in Central around late in the afternoon and they went straight to their apartment. Cecelia dumped her bag in her room before heading towards the door.<p>

"Wait where are you going, we just got here?" Ed asked.

"I wanted to go by Madame Christmas's and talk with her, she's probably very unhappy with me for disappearing like that."

"Well I can go with you if you want." He offered.

Cecelia waved him off. "No don't worry about it; I can take care of everything. You just relax or something."

Ed gave her a quick kiss on her cheek before seeing her off. She smiled and began making her way through the streets of Central until she arrived at the familiar bar. Taking a deep breath, she jerked the door open and stepped inside. Despite only being gone for a week, it felt like a month and she was glad to see that everything looked the same.

"Cecelia!"

She had just enough time to turn and brace herself when a body crashed into hers, slamming them against the wall. Cecelia grunted and pushed a dramatically wailing Ellie off of her.

"Oh Cecelia I missed you, I thought you and Ed disappeared and eloped without me!"

"Ellie shush, you can't say stuff like that," she hissed, "people will start spreading rumors or something."

"Calm down, you don't actually think I would do something like that do you?"

"Yes I do."

Ellie frowned and flicked Cecelia's chin. "Don't be rude, I covered all of your shifts so you owe me."

"How angry was Madame Christmas?"

As if on cue, a low gruff cough rang through the empty bar and attracted the two young women's attention. Madame Christmas stood there with a blank face, a burning cigarette in one hand and a little tan fan in the other. Cecelia gulped and straightened up as her employer slowly made her way over. She flinched when Madame Christmas lifted her fan and bopped her on the head.

"Don't leave unannounced like that again." She said.

"Ahh I'm sorry and it won't happen again I promise."

The older woman gave her a curt nod before turning on her heel and stalking back to her office. Ellie and Cecelia stood there stunned for a moment before Ellie spoke up

"W-what…the last time I missed a day of work she made me wash all of the dishes and you miss an entire week of work and only get a smack on the head with a dingy fan, how is this fair?" Ellie wailed.

"What can I say; she just likes me more than you."

Cecelia laughed as her friend let out a frustrated groan before going back behind the counter. Cecelia pulled herself up onto one of the bar stools so she could continue chatting with Ellie. They spent the next half an hour catching up but it was cut short when another one of their companions arrived. Gretchen sheepishly walked in and took the stool next to Cecelia.

"It's nice to have you back in town Cecelia, Ellie has been talking my ear off with all sorts of theories about what happened to you." she said, keeping her head ducked down so her face was covered by a curtain of blond hair.

"It's good to see you too Gretchen, I feel like I haven't seen you in forever."

Gretchen released a quiet mouse like laugh. "I suppose I've been busy."

Ellie reached over and tipped her older sister's head up into the light, despite Gretchen's protest. A dark purple ring circled her right eye and a red weal was forming on her cheek. Gretchen slapped Ellie's hand away and tried hiding the marks, but Cecelia and Ellie had already seen the damage. Anger welled up in Cecelia and she clenched her hands until they were tight little fists. She could imagine herself punching Gretchen's bastard husband right in his fat face.

"Gretchen what happened?" she questioned after calming herself down.

"I fell down and ran into the dresser, that's all." She responded automatically.

"Oh come on, we know that's not true, so what really happened? Did Brent do that?"

Gretchen nodded softly before directing her gaze down to her lap. Cecelia sighed and threw her arm over her friend's shoulders, giving her a firm and reassuring squeeze. Ellie reached over and patted her sister's head.

"Come on Gretch, I've said this so many times, you've got to leave him or you're going to get seriously hurt." Ellie said.

"But he promised he would change this time, that he would stop hitting me and start seeing someone about controlling his anger." She reasoned, but still sounded so unsure of herself.

"That's not good enough," Cecelia started, "he shouldn't have been hitting you in the first place. What got him riled up anyway?"

"I umm… went and had lunch with a friend and Brent happened to see us."

"You're kidding me right? You were eating lunch with someone and he decided to go insane and beat up your face? I have lunch with people all the time and that doesn't give a man the right to pummel me." Ellie snapped.

"You don't understand Ellie; you've never been in love. He said it was for my own good."

The two sisters were glaring daggers at one another when Cecelia intervened. "But Gretchen, do you love him?"

Gretchen looked at Cecelia as tears started to well up in her eyes. A sob racked through her before she turned and hid her face behind her hands.

"I-I-I have to love him, I'm his..W-w-w-wife… husbands and wives are supposed to be in love…right?"

Cecelia and Ellie exchanged worried glances as they comforted the crying woman who continued to mumble thing about being married. When the tears subsided, Gretchen pushed away from her stool and excused herself. The two younger women watched her go and shared a sigh when the bar door shut.

"I hate that man; he's lower than dirt for hurting her like that." Ellie declared.

"I'm with you on that, but what can we do if she's not willing to help herself?"

"I don't know, report him?"

They both tried racking their brains for an idea but came up short. Upset with what happened with Gretchen, Cecelia left the bar brooding as she walked back to the apartment. When she arrived, she moodily kicked off her shoes and pulled off her jacket. Ed appeared from his bedroom with a bright smile.

"I got a call for you while you were gone and I think you're going to be happy, that Mr. Yancey guy called and said they wanted to publish your book. They want to set up a meeting with you as soon as possible to get things started." He said excitedly.

Ed was expecting an over the top reaction, but he only got a simple smile and a little cheer. He frowned over a little and walked towards her.

"Hey what's wrong Cecelia, why aren't you excited? This is good news; you should be jumping off the walls right now."

Cecelia walked into his open arms and curled her arms around his middle, resting her head against his chest and sighing.

"I know, but I saw something really upsetting at the bar earlier. I was chatting with Ellie when Gretchen came in and she had a nasty looking black eye and this big red mark on her cheek. The worst part is that her bastard husband's got her convinced that it's for her own good. I asked her if she loved him and all she said was that if you're married then you're in love but that's not how it works. I'm really scared for her Ed, he's going to seriously hurt her I know it. I mean if she got her face beat up just for going out to lunch with her friend, then what's going to happen when she accidentally breaks a plate or something stupid like that?" she ranted.

Ed led her over to the couch and they sat, he kept his arm around her the entire time.

"That man deserves to rot in jail, but I'm not really sure what we can do until Gretchen comes to her senses and realizes that he is only bringing her down."

"You used to be in the military; can't you pull some strings with some of your old military friends and get him arrested?"

"That's not how it works Cecelia."

Defeated, Cecelia sighed and slumped in her seat. "I know… I just wish I could do something."

"When the right time comes, we'll be able to help her and I promise to help you. We'll bring this guy down together." Ed said.

She smiled. "You say all the right things to cheer me up, now tell me about the call with Mr. Yancey."

Ed chuckled before retelling his conversation with Mr. Yancey. This time he got a nice reaction from her, she squealed and pulled him into a bone crushing hug. He congratulated her and left to set food out for dinner, he picked something up while she was out and together they shared a calm dinner. They both helped in cleaning up and she went to her room and changed into her pajamas. After she was dressed, she walked out of her room and found Ed in the bathroom brushing his teeth. She followed suit until she was pleased with her oral hygiene.

"Well little lady, it's time for us to get to bed."

He kissed her forehead and turned to leave, but Cecelia caught his arm. Ed looked down at her, she had this bashful blush on her cheeks and she mumbled something inaudible.

"I didn't quite catch that."

"Iwanttosleepwithyoutonight." She said as fast as possible, but Ed managed to make it out.

"Are you sure? Isn't that sort of scandalous?" he asked.

Ed wasn't opposed to having her in bed, but he wasn't sure if that was a normal thing for couples to do seeing as they weren't married.

"Well I mean we're just going to be sleeping in the same bed, that's all." She murmured.

Ed smiled and grabbed her hand, pulling her out of the bathroom and into his bedroom. She freed herself and jumped onto his bed, crawling under the blankets until she was at the head of the bed. She covered her eyes with her hands while he changed.

"Are you sure you don't want to look, it's quite the treat or so I've heard." He boasted.

"Oh shut up and get over here."

He pulled a plain old cotton t shirt on with pajama pants and got into bed with her. Cecelia reached over and took out his hair tie, running her fingers through the curtain of golden blond hair until it was smooth as silk. They both lie down and got comfortable, Cecelia curling up to Ed who welcomed her warmth.

"Good night Cecelia and sweet dreams."

"Night Ed."

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><p>This was probably one of my favorite chapters to work on. Anyway I hope you all liked it and please leave a review if you can. See you all next chapter!<p> 


	29. Chapter 29

Open Up

Hey everyone, I finally got to updating. This is just a cute little filler but I have a note at the end that I hope you all read. Enjoy!

Typical disclaimer: I don't own FMA but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>Later on in the week, Cecelia woke up in a very good mood because one of her favorite days of the year had arrived, April fool's Day. And she planned on going all out and showing no mercy to Ed. The night before she'd even taken the time to write down all of the pranks she'd come up with. She crept out of her bedroom and poked her head around the corner to see if Ed was around but he was nowhere to be seen. A mischievous grin made its way onto her face and she happily made her way into the kitchen. Cecelia started on breakfast like she would on any other day and made sure to make something good so the scent would waft into Ed's room. Sure enough when she was practically finished with their food, the man of the hour stumbled out into the open and plopped onto a chair in the dining area.<p>

"Good morning sweetheart," she called, "how'd you sleep?"

Ed mumbled something that Cecelia couldn't make out.

She plated their biscuits and gravy and then grabbed a plain old cup for her and she made sure to grab a thick cup for Ed. Cecelia pulled the bottle of milk out of the ice bin and poured some in both glasses, only filling Ed's half full. She managed to balance all of the dishes and brought it out, serving Ed his food and his glass of milk. Biting the inside of her cheek to hold back her smirk, she watched as Ed tiredly grabbed his cup and without checking its contents, brought it to his lips and took a big gulp of it. In an instant, his eyes bulged with the realization of what was in his mouth and he spewed his milk all over the floor. Cecelia burst out laughing as Ed started wiping his tongue with the collar of his shirt. By the time her laughing fit was over, her eyes were rimmed with tears.

"What the hell was that for Cecelia?" he wailed.

"I don't know what you're talking about." she replied, nonchalantly taking a sip of her milk.

"Oh bull, why did you give me milk?"

"Oh you mean that, it's April fool's day silly."

Ed shot her a dirty glare before taking his cup into the kitchen and getting himself water. They both ate in silence, every time Cecelia stole a peek at him; Ed was grumbling and glaring at her. She silently cheered in her head and finished up her breakfast. When she was all done, she stood and as she passed Ed, patted his head before retreating to the kitchen. Cecelia quickly washed up the dishes and announced that she was going to take a shower. When she was in the bathroom, she made sure the door was locked just in case Ed tried to pull anything on her before starting the water, stripping down and stepping into the hot jets of water. As she was rinsing she shampoo out of her hair, the water quickly turned from steaming hot to ice cold in a matter of seconds. She let out a loud girlish squeal and jumped out of the way, the skin the water came in contact with erupted with goose bumps. Taking a deep breath, she quickly rinsed the rest of the shampoo out of her hair, shut off the water and jumped out, wrapping her body with her fluffy towel. After Cecelia warmed herself up, she made sure her towel was securely wrapped around her middle before stepping out of the bathroom. To her surprise, Ed stood there leaning against the wall with a smirk of his own.

"How was your shower?"

She quickly put two and two together and jabbed his chest with her finger.

"Why'd you do that? I was taking a nice shower and then out of nowhere it goes cold." she hissed.

"Oh you know just a little payback."

Cecelia grew a smirk of her own and simply nodded. "I see, well Elric it's on."

She turned and made her way to her room, making sure to bump him with her hip as she went. As soon as Cecelia was safe in her room, she pulled on undergarments, black shorts and one of Ed's button down shirts. She started sifting through her notebook trying to pick out the best prank to pull on Ed.

"Hmph, if it's a war you want Ed…then it's a war you're gonna get." 

Cecelia and Ed spent the rest of the day pulling pranks on one another. Around lunch time while Cecelia was in her bedroom, Ed filled the entire hallway with paper cups fool of water and she had to spend a good hour and a half removing the cups. Later when Ed was bent over looking for a book on the bottom shelf, Cecelia ripped a scrap piece of cloth and Ed nearly hit the roof because he thought he'd ripped his favorite pants. Those were only the harmless pranks though. As evening came, Ed ended up with a bruised cheek because he'd tripped over a chord that Cecelia strung up at the end of the hall and the left side of Cecelia's hair was tangled and matted because Ed got sticky stuff in it. By the time night rolled around, Ed and Cecelia as well as the apartment, were a mess. Cecelia stood in her room with a white t shirt in her hand. She sucked in a breath before running out and waving her make shift flag.

"Truce, I want a truce!" she called out, looking up and down the hall.

Ed appeared with a pillow in hand. Their prank war at one point turned into a big pillowfight.

"This isn't a joke right."

She waved her flag around. "No this is an actual truce; I want to end this before one of us breaks a bone."

Ed dropped his pillow and opened out his arms which Cecelia happily jumped into. They embraced for awhile before he let her go.

"Happy April Fool's day." she said.

"I never want to celebrate with you again." he said, rubbing his bruised cheek.

"Oh don't be a baby; I'm the one who has to get a haircut."

She made her way into the bathroom and pulled the scissors out from under the sink. Ed watched as she cut away at the sticky mess on the left side of her hair, leaving it significantly shorter than the other side. Cecelia took a deep breath as she gathered the rest of her hair and hacked it off until all of her hair was the same length. It took her some time until it was all even. Instead of being at her waist, her wavy brown hair now hung a little past her shoulders. She turned to Ed with a sheepish look.

"Well how does it look? I mean I'll definitely have a hair dresser fix it up, but for an at home haircut, it's not too shabby."

"I definitely miss it long," he gestured to the pile of brown on the floor, "but I think it looks really good liked this too."

Cecelia grinned and left the bathroom. The two of them worked on cleaning up the apartment. They straightened the living and dining area, cleaned the hair out of the bathroom and returned the pillows from their pillow fight back to their original locations. It was around ten at night when they were completely finished. They shared a small snack of cheese and crackers before collapsing onto the couch. Ed had his arm around her shoulders as they sat and relaxed, but it wasn't long until her head lolled over against his chest and feminine little snores were coming from her. Ed curled one of his arms under her knees and the other went behind her upper back and he stood, carrying her towards his room. As he walked, he looked down at her with a smile. _Maybe one day I'll be able to carry you like this and you'll be wearing a pretty white dress…_ he thought. Ed carefully slipped her into his room and gently set her down on his bed. He quickly changed into pajamas before crawling into bed with her, pulling the blanket tight around them both. Placing a kiss against her temple, Ed let his eyes shut as thoughts of love drew him to sleep.

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><p>Mhmmm, I like it! I hope you all don't think I'm rushing things at all, I mean Ed didn't say he loved her, but that he was thinking about love and marriage in general. Any who, I'm thinking about finishing up this story soon. If things go according to plan (Which they probably won't) I'm thinking ten more chapters left. But there will probably be more because I don't want to rush it, but not too much. Drop a review if you can!<p> 


	30. Chapter 30

Open Up

I really suck. I said I would update this last week, but I never got to it. I'm sorry! But I hope you all forgive me and enjoy this chapter because I liked writing it. Things are starting to get interesting. **ALSO**, if any of you like Ouran High School Host Club, I just posted a fanfic and would love it if you all could check it out. Sorry for reposting this so many times! My computer keeps freezing on me and messes me up. Enjoy.

Typical disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia and her friends.

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><p>The next few weeks went by without any issues for Ed and Cecelia. Ed mostly caught up with his work and he'd started researching his own project on the side, often time bringing home stacks of research books home. To Cecelia's displeasure, the entire dining table was covered with notes and books so they had to share their meals on the couch. Cecelia on the other hand spent her days in Mr. Yancey's office working out last minute hitches with her upcoming children's book and at night she was busy serving customers at the bars. They'd fallen into a comfortable cycle and instead of growing bored, Cecelia actually enjoyed their easy going days. But one thing was causing her a fair amount of stress; Gretchen. The older woman's bruises were becoming more frequent and each time Cecelia confronted her about it, Gretchen would quickly change the subject. And lately she'd been very secretive about her life. Each time Ellie and Cecelia worked together, they would vent about their hatred for Gretchen's husband Brent, but there wasn't much they could do if Gretchen wasn't willing.<p>

On one Saturday afternoon, Cecelia was seated outside a café waiting for Gretchen to show up because earlier that morning Cecelia found a note attached to her front door asking for the two to meet up at the specified time. This of course concerned Cecelia a little bit, but she wasn't going to blow off her friend. While she waited, she sipped at her glass of iced tea and looked around. The weather was getting nicer and people were becoming more pleasant because of it. She glanced at her short sleeved t shirt and nodded, just seeing her bare arm made her mood brighter. As she was looking around, she spotted Gretchen and waved her over. Cecelia noted the frantic look on Gretchen's features as she sat across her.

"Long time no see Gretchen, what'd you want to talk about?" she started.

Gretchen was silent for a long time before responding. "Cecelia…I did a very bad thing."

One of Cecelia's eyebrows shot up in curiosity. "What do you mean?"

She took a deep breath. "Let me start from the beginning, when I was a teenager there was a boy who was courting me and his name is Jean Havoc …I really loved him, but he enlisted in the military and my parents wouldn't let me stay with him. It didn't help that his parents weren't wealthy, they owned a quaint little general store, but anyway…while I was at Edward's birthday party I ran in to him again."

Cecelia cut in. "Was it the guy with the cigarette?"

Gretchen nodded. "Yes, he picked up the habit while he was in the military."

"I remember one day I saw you and him walking down the street."

Her cheeks flushed. "I see… well that ties into my story. I tried avoiding him after that, but I couldn't shake him off. He said he wanted to catch up and so I agreed, hoping he'd leave me alone after that because I didn't want Brent to jump to any conclusions. Things didn't really work out like I hoped though… after that first get together, we ended up meeting up for lunch and just talking and it's been nice. But then a few weeks ago he admitted that he still had feelings for me and that he wanted to be with me, but I'm married as you know. He said that didn't matter and I…I started falling for him all over again."

"Well do you love him?" Cecelia asked and Gretchen nodded bashfully, "well then I don't get how you did anything bad. You found love with another man; it's not your fault. And besides, your husband is terrible."

"That's not the bad part though, one time during a date, Brent found out what I was doing and forbid me to see Jean, but I just couldn't…so I would sneak off whenever I could and we would meet at his apartment and spend some time together. Well… during one of those meetings we got very intimate…" she murmured.

"You had sex?" asked Cecelia bluntly.

"Yes... and I've missed my monthly bleeding…. Jean and I went a friend of his who is a doctor and he did a test…" Gretchen drifted off as her voice began to waver and her eyes watered.

"You're pregnant aren't you?"

Gretchen nodded sadly and inhaled a deep breath and slowly let it out to calm herself down.

"I don't know what to do, I'll start showing in a few months and Brent will know it isn't his, we haven't been intimate in a long time. Jean wants me to leave Brent and live with him so we can raise the baby, but I…"

Cecelia cut her off. "Please don't tell me that you can't do it because I know you can. You're in a sad, loveless, and abusive marriage to a brute and there is a sweet guy out there who loves you and you love him…you're holding his child. Don't you want to be happy Gretchen?"

"I-I-I do, but it will be so scandalous and everyone will find out."

Cecelia couldn't help but smack her forehead in frustration. "Who cares about what the old crones around here think? You need to do whatever makes you happy alright. Ellie and I are here to support you and you need to do what's best for this child as well as yourself."

"I forgot about Ellie…you can't tell her about this Cecelia."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not ready for anyone else to know about this…I know Ellie is my sister, but I'm just not ready."

"I'll keep this a secret, but you have to tell her soon and you have to get away from Brent."

"I will, but you have to give me time."

Cecelia nodded and reached over to give Gretchen a small hug. And to her dismay, Gretchen had to leave because she'd told her husband that she was running a quick errand to pick up more flour and sugar. Cecelia sipped at her iced tea and let all of this information work its way through her brain. She was definitely happy that her friend had finally found love, but she was also very worried that Gretchen wouldn't break it off with Brent until it was too late.

"I hope she does the right thing…" she said to herself.

Fishing out money from her pocket, she tossed it on her table and left the small care. She stuffed her hands in her pockets as she strolled down the sidewalk towards her apartment, whistling a little tune, but midway through her song, someone grabbed onto her arm and jerked her down an alley. Cecelia yelped and lifted her hand to claw at her attacker, but stopped when she saw the menacing eyes of the one and only Brent Hudson. She tried tugging her arm out of his grip but he only tightened it enough to make her wince.

"Why were you talking to my wife?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." she replied snootily.

He squeezed her arm harder and she gasped. "Don't play coy with me girl. I saw you and Gretchen at that café, now what did that wretched cow say to you?"

"That is none of your business." Cecelia said, trying to remain the calm despite the severe pain in her arm.

Brent narrowed his eyes at her, but she stood her ground and kept all of her new information to herself. When he realized that she wasn't going to talk, he released her arm and without a second thought pushed her harshly against the brick wall behind her. Cecelia grimaced in pain and discomfort when he stuck his pointer finger in her face.

"Stay away from my wife, you hear me? If I catch you with her again then you're going to pay, you hear me?"

"It's a free country and I will do as I please." Cecelia retorted.

He gave her one more rough push before walking away, leaving Cecelia alone to examine her already bruising arm. She frowned at the large mark. _I can't let Ed see this…_ She hurried home, hoping Ed would be gone so she could change into a long sleeved shirt, but he was home. He gave her a small hug the moment she was inside the apartment. She had to bury her face in his chest to hide the grimace that appeared on her face because he caught her arm right on her bruise.

"What are you doing home so early Ed?" she asked.

"I wanted to come home early and surprise you, we've both been so busy lately and I just wanted some time to ourselves." he explained.

She wiggled out of his embrace. "Alright, but I need to change first."

Cecelia started making her way towards her room, keeping her arm in front of her and out of his view.

"But why?" he asked, "You've been so excited because you can wear short sleeved shirts now."

"Well now I'm cold." she said before slipping into her room and shutting her door.

Cecelia went straight to her closet and pulled off the first long sleeved shirt she found and exchanged her t-shirt for the long sleeved. She sighed as she looked at the mirror.

"So much for enjoying the spring weather." she mumbled sadly.

She exited the table and found a seat next to Ed on the couch.

"Are you feeling alright Cecelia? You're acting sort of weird."

She gulped and nodded, she'd never been a very good liar. "Of course I'm alright."

"If you say so, well what do you want to do…."

Cecelia started to tune him out because she had too much going on in her head. A part of her wanted to tell him what had happened to her earlier, her aching arm being a good reminder of previous events, but another part wanted her to hide it because she knew he would confront Brent which would only lead to more problems for Gretchen. Instead of going with her gut feeling of telling Ed, she chose the latter and lied about it.

_I'm sorry Ed, but I have to do this. I know he'll understand in the long run…I hope._

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><p>Uh oh! Here comes trouble. I'll try and get the next chapter out before the weekend! Please drop a review if you can because it encourages me to write and I really enjoy the feedback. See you all next chapter!<p> 


	31. Chapter 31

Open Up

I finally posted this chapter. I had to rewrite it a few times so I could get it right and so I'm quite pleased with this one. I hope you all enjoy this chapter too!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>Over the next week, Ed's concern over Cecelia's weird behavior only grew larger and larger. She was very secretive about what she was up to and he certainly noticed how she would only wear long sleeved shirts even though it was getting hotter outside. He'd wanted to confront her about all the secrecy, but he decided her odd behavior was due to her nervousness over her book's launch party which was later on that night. Ed was certainly excited for it because he had a big surprise lined up for her. The moment he found out the date of the party, he called Alphonse who agreed to come back to Central for the event. Ed was actually getting dressed so he could go pick up Al from the train station. After pulling his clothes on, he poked his head out of his bedroom and looked around, but Cecelia was nowhere to be seen. He stepped into the dining area and saw a little note on the table, picking it up he skimmed the notes contents.<p>

_Hey you! I won't be home today, getting ready with Gretchen and Ellie. _

_I'll see you at the party and don't forget it's at 7._

_~Cecelia_

Ed smiled when he saw the little heart she drew by her name and folded the piece of paper before putting it into his pocket. He went over to the door, pulled on his shoes, and locked the door behind him as he started making his way through the busy Central streets. It took him no time at all to get to the train station and he ended up waiting around for a good twenty minutes before Al's train arrived. The moment Ed saw his brother, he hurried over and gave him a big hug, making sure to give Al's back a nice slap.

"You're looking good Al, how's Xing been treating you?" Ed asked while taking one of Al's bags.

"It's been really nice, I've learned a lot about their culture and I've gotten very good with Alkahestry. You know, I've also been thinking about staying here for good." Al said nonchalantly.

Ed stumbled in surprise, nearly running into a man on the sidewalk and looked at Al.

"No kidding? What's with the change of plans? I remember you telling everyone that you wanted to explore all of the other countries around here."

Al shrugged. "I don't know I've just had a change of heart I guess. I mean I love the idea of getting to travel all over the place, but I just want a place to call home I guess."

"Well you're definitely welcome to stay with Cecelia and I while you get things worked out." He offered.

"I will definitely be taking you up on that offer."

The Elric brothers both talked about what was going on with their lives as they walked to Ed's apartment and Ed filled Al in on Cecelia's odd behavior. They both set Al's bags in Ed's room and they both took a seat in the dining area.

"So how are all of our friends in Xing doing?" Ed asked.

"They're all doing pretty good. Ling has been doing a good job with taking care of Xing and you'll never guess what happened. In front of all of the higher ups, Ling announced that he would be taking Lan Fan as his bride. Everyone went crazy over that, saying that it was not the proper thing to do, but Ling ended up getting his way."

Ed smiled and couldn't help but think of the first time they'd met Ling and Lan Fan. "Good for them, how are you and May Chang doing?"

"How many times have I told you that May and I do not have a thing brother? But she's partially the reason I want to move back out here, there is just no way May and I could ever be together romantically and she would never open her heart to anyone else if I stayed around." Al explained.

"It's for the best then, because I want you to be happy too Al."

Just as Al opened his mouth to respond, the telephone started to ring and Ed got up to answer it.

"Hello? This is Edward Elric speaking."

"Ed, this is Dr. Knox calling." He said with a very gruff voice.

"Oh man, I haven't heard from you in years. How have you been?" Ed asked.

"That's not why I'm calling," he said bluntly, "I was on a walk earlier and happened across a young lady lying by an ally and she had a badly twisted ankle and a sprained wrist. So I took her back to my house and got her all wrapped up."

Ed scratched his chin. "That's nice and all, but what does this girl have to do with me?"

"Let me finish my story. After much prodding on my part, she finally told me who left her so banged up and she said a man who has been harassing her friend has been bugging her too and after confrontation with him, he shoved her and she twisted her ankle as she fell and ended up landing on her wrist which sprained it."

"That's terrible; you don't think I did this do you? And I thought you were a surgeon."

Dr. Knox laughed loud enough to make Ed pull the phone away from his ear. "Don't insult me boy, I can take care of basic things like that. I'm a doctor after all. Anyway, after she told me her name, I had a flash back of sorts. I remember visiting Madame Christmas's bar and she told me about a new girl she hired who happened to be staying with you."

Ed's face paled and he gripped the telephone like a vice so he wouldn't drop the receiver.

"Her name is Cecelia…isn't it?" he asked quietly.

"Yes, Cecelia Wheelright. She'll be okay, but she's got a crutch right now and she shouldn't be doing any heavy lifting for awhile. I figured I should tell you because she seemed very secretive about what happened to her."

"Thanks Dr. Knox." He said before hanging up without a goodbye.

Ed stalked over to the couch and sighed as anger rose through every part of his being. He wanted to beat the living hell out of that Brent guy because he was positive that he was the one that hurt Cecelia. But at the same time Ed was hurt. Cecelia hadn't told him about what was going on and when he asked, she lied and said everything was fine. He took a deep breath to stop the light tremors that rocked through him as he clenched and unclenched his fists to calm down.

"Brother, what happened?" Al asked and then Ed retold all of the information he'd just heard as well as what was happening with Gretchen and her husband.

"I can't believe she hasn't told me anything, I'm supposed to be here to protect her, but how can I do that if she doesn't tell me what's going on?" Ed asked as he began to pace the living area.

"I don't know Ed… but I do know she wouldn't hide something so big from you without a good reason." Al reasoned.

"Don't you dare take her side Al; I have every right to be angry right now. She decided not to tell me that this bastard has been harassing her and now she's on a crutch!" he snapped.

"I agree, you do have every right to be angry, but I feel like we should also hear Cecelia's side of the story as well." said Al defensively.

Ed and Al spent the next hour coming up with different theories as to why Cecelia didn't tell him about Brent bothering her, but each theory ended with Ed complaining about being kept in the dark. Al eventually dragged him to his room so they could get dressed for Cecelia's launch party.

Ed ended up in a simple black dress shirt with a gold colored tie that Al had to tie for him because he kept messing up the knot, black slacks with a simple black belt and black dress shoes. And instead of a braid he wore his hair in a low pony tail. _I look pretty good._ He thought as he examined himself in the mirror. Al got dressed in a navy blue dress shirt and khakis with chocolate brown dress shoes.

"We look so fancy." Al said as they stepped outside and started walking towards the location of the party.

"What can I say? I have a great sense of style." Ed boasted.

"Says the one who couldn't figure out his tie." He teased.

As they got closer and closer to the parties location, Ed's anticipation as well as his disappointment and anger with Cecelia grew larger and larger. He wasn't going to let her off the hook, that's for sure. By the time they arrived, there were quite a few guests in the room, but Ed's eyes quickly scanned around for Cecelia and soon landed on her seated figure. Cecelia smiled when she noticed him coming towards her, but it soon fell when she realized that he wasn't looking at her dress, but it soon fell when she realized he wasn't looking at her dress. His eyes were glued to the small bulge; which was the bandage wrapped around her sprained wrist, that was hidden under her arm's length glove.

Ed could tell from the look in her eyes that Cecelia knew her secret was out and that he planned on getting every detail of what happened out of her.

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><p>Dun Dun Dun. What's going to happen? Hehehe well I hope you all liked it and I encourage you all to leave me a review!<p> 


	32. Chapter 32

Open Up

Ta-Da, I got this one up and ready a lot earlier than I usually do because I felt bad (not really) about leaving you all with a cliff hanger so I posted this one up. And everyone, sometime soon this story is going to be coming to an end! I've already got an outline for it.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia

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><p>Cecelia gulped when she saw a very unhappy Ed making his way over towards her. She self consciously moved her injured wrist into her lap hoping to draw his attention away from it, but his eyes were glued to it like a hawk would stalk its prey. When Ed ended up in front of her, he reached down and lifted the skirt of her dress so he could see her feet. One foot had a cute little black flat on it, but the other had a very unappealing wrap around it which was supposed to stay on until she was all healed. Behind her seat was the crutch the doctor had given her. Cecelia bit her lip and her eyes would dart from Ed's disappointed look; which broke her heart knowing she caused it, down to her lap.<p>

"Cecelia…" he started, "Why did you hide this from me?"

"I didn't want you to find out about the stuff earlier because I knew you would react and confront Brent which would only cause more trouble for Gretchen."

Ed blinked. "What happened earlier?"

She cursed silently. "Umm…well before the incident today happened, I had another run in with Brent and he bruised my arm, nothing bad though I swear." She added, trying to lessen the sound of it.

Ed's face darkened and Cecelia heard him inhale a large breath and watched as he ran a shaky hand through his blond hair.

"I'm your boyfriend Cecelia. You're not supposed to keep things like this from me, if you would have told me about this then you probably wouldn't have a crutch right now."

"But I wanted Gretchen-"

Ed cut in. "I know you're concerned for your friend Cecelia, but you need to take care of yourself." He said harshly which caused Cecelia to jump in her seat and her eyes water with tears.

"Ed…I'm sorry."

She reached out for his hand but he pulled it back just as her fingers brushed his.

"I'm really disappointed right now Cecelia…I can't even look at you."

Cecelia watched sadly as Ed turned on his heel and left her alone. Sighing, she got out of her chair with the help of her crutch and made her way around to talk to a few important people with the publishing company because she needed something to distract her from what had just taken place. After socializing for a half an hour, she plopped back down in her chair. With nothing else to distract her, she let the tears that she'd worked so hard to hide slide down her cheeks and land on her hands. She ducked her head so her brown hair created a wavy curtain that would hide her face. _I tried doing something good, but I've only managed to make things worse._ She clenched and unclenched her hand as she tried to calm down because this was a party for her after all and she couldn't just sit there and cry. Cecelia flinched when someone's hand landed on her shoulder and gave her a reassuring squeeze. She looked up and saw a familiar face.

"Alphonse?"

He offered a small smile before leaning down and hugging her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked after brushing away her tears.

"Ed invited me to come out as a surprise for your party… and I was there when he found out about the whole accident."

Cecelia frowned. "Yeah… that did not go over well."

"But you do understand why he's upset, don't you Cecelia?"

She nodded. "But I was just trying to protect my friend Gretchen because if Ed would have confronted her husband, he would have beaten the living day lights out of her. I was doing a good thing Al and it's not like I'm in the hospital or anything."

Alphonse sighed. "You see Cecelia, there's just one thing you don't understand about my brother and it's that he likes protecting people, that's just what he does because once when we were younger, there was a little girl named Nina that we would watch over…well she got in an accident right under our noses and there was nothing you could do. Ever since that day, Ed has been trying to protect everyone who is important to him and Cecelia…you're really important to him and knowing that he couldn't protect you when he had a chance to do so, well it's killing him on the inside."

To Cecelia's dismay, her eyes began to water again as she listened to Al speak. After he finished, she felt like the worst person in the world. She hadn't meant to hurt the person whom she cared the most about. Knowing she was the reason he was hurting was worse than anything she'd ever felt before because she…she was in love with Ed and hurting him was the exact opposite of what she wanted to do.

"Oh gosh Al…I don't know what to do. I didn't know that his whole situation hurt him that much…I feel so bad. I was only trying to do something good and in the end I've only turned him away from me. I…I…"

Al looked at her with curiosity. "Hm?"

"I love him Al…"

"Do you mean that?"

She nodded earnestly. "I mean it, I really do and I would never do something to intentionally hurt him because he's the most important thing in the world to me. I'd burn my book and never write a single story again in a heartbeat if it meant I could take back what I've just done."

Al smiled and reached behind her chair to grab her crutch which he handed over to her. "Well Cecelia…I think you need to tell him what you just told me."

He helped her up out of her chair.

"I don't think I can do that… he said that he couldn't even look at me and we both know how stubborn Ed can be."

Al chuckled. "Well if you love him as much as you say you do, then you'll just have to make him."

He gave her a pat on the head for good luck before showing her the way to his older brother. Al watched with a proud smile as Cecelia hobbled over to where Ed stood chatting away with an older man. _Oh brother…you picked a good one._

Cecelia slowly but surely made her way through the small hoard of people until she ended up by Ed who seemed to be ignoring her even though she'd called his name a few times. Even though she deserved the cold shoulder, she was getting a little bit annoyed. Balancing on her good leg, she used her crutch to whack him on his non-automail leg. He yelped and finally turned his attention to her.

"What the hell was that for?"

"I need to talk you Ed."

"Well I don't really want to talk to you right now."

"Well I don't care because this is important."

Ed crossed his arms over his chest and stared down into her hazel eyes. "Well fine."

"Alright… I know what I did was wrong and you have every right to be angry with me. I should have told you what was going on because you would have helped me get through with everything. And having you be mad at me has made me feel like a terrible person, but it also helped me realize something important."

Cecelia gulped, her knees suddenly starting to shake with nervousness. _You can do this._

"Ed I'm in love with you and you're the most important person in the world to me_. _I never meant to hurt you and by all means you don't have to forgive me right now but umm…I'm just gonna go now."

She turned around and started to walk away when his hands fell on her shoulder and quickly spun her around, making her drop her crutch.

"Say it again." He demanded, looking quite serious.

"Umm… I'm gonna go now?"

"No before that."

"I never meant to hurt you?"

He sighed. "Before that."

"That I love you?" she said bashfully, noticing that the people around them were watching the spectacle they were causing.

Ed nodded. "Again."

"I love you."

He had her say it a few more times before pulling him into a very tight hug. To say the least Cecelia was confused because just a few minutes before he was giving her the cold shoulder but now she was getting hugged like she was a teddy bear. But she wasn't sad about this of course, if anything she was relieved because this; hopefully, meant he was returning her feelings. After all, she took love very seriously and it wasn't something she casually threw around. Other than her family, Ed was the first person she'd ever said 'I love you' to.

"I've never been in love before but," he whispered into her ear, his warm breath against her ear sending shivers down her spine, "but what I feel for you is too strong to be just petty affection, by God Cecelia I'm in love with you but…don't ever scare me again okay? If something is going on then you have to tell me…promise?"

She nodded even though her heart was beating a million miles a minute at the moment. "I promise."

They released themselves from their embrace just as the crowd of people began to clap. Their cheeks burned tomato red and they both had bashful looks on their faces. Everyone turned their attention to the little stage which had been put together when someone; Mr. Yancey, cleared his throat into the mic.

"Well Miss Wheelright, you truly are the woman of the hour. Well everyone, it's seems I've lost my train of thought so why don't we just get back to our party." He said, earning giggles and chuckles from the crowd.

For the rest of the night, Ed and Cecelia stuck together. Their love confessions seeming to smooth everything over with the two of them which they were both glad for. Cecelia snuck a glance at Ed and couldn't help but smile.

_He loves me!_

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><p><em><em>How sweet. I hope it wasn't too uncharacteristic of Ed, but I needed it to happen in order for this story to wrap up. So if you're offended then sorry! I hope you all enjoyed and pretty please leave a review!


	33. Chapter 33

Open Up

New chapter! I seriously want to thank everyone who has been reading this story and reviewing. You are awesome! It's nice to read what you guys think because knowing I have people who are really excited for this story encourages me to get off my butt and actually write. I hope you guys like it!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia, Gretchen, and Ellie

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><p>Later on that night when the party had died down, Ed, Al, and Cecelia slowly made their way back to Ed's apartment. The night time air was warm so the two Elric's didn't mind having to walk slowly for Cecelia's sake. Eventually they ended up at the apartment and after yawning, Al excused himself for bed and went to Cecelia's room, shutting the door lightly so it wouldn't slam.<p>

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you earlier but you're going to be staying in my room while Al is here." Ed said nonchalantly.

Cecelia blushed and looked away. "Isn't that umm…I dunno kind of inappropriate?"

"No. Why would it be?"

She started to twiddle her thumbs bashfully. "Erm well you know…we aren't married…" she whispered the last part.

"Well then let's get married."

She whacked him with her crutch. "I'm being serious! Wouldn't that be really scandalous if we slept in the same bed?"

Ed chuckled. "No it's fine alright and besides, I love you so who cares? Plus we've slept in the same bed before I vaguely remember you attacking me and dragging me into bed."

"Okay now whoa, if anything you'd be attacking me because I'm the attractive one in this relationship and that time doesn't count because I was upset that night."

They both thought back to the first time they'd spent the night in the same bed together when it was Ed asking if sleeping together would be scandalous and Cecelia waving it off. It seemed the tables had turned and now the latter was being the worry wart. Cecelia decided to drop it and just sleep in the same bed as him. They went into his room and when Cecelia asked about pajamas, Ed pointed to his dresser where she found a drawer filled with her clothes. She made him turn around while she changed into a pair of sleeping pants and a t shirt. When they were dressed in night clothes, they crawled into bed and were immediately drawn to the other's warmth and ended up cuddling throughout the night.

The next morning, Ed magically woke up before Cecelia. He propped himself up on one elbow to look at her. _She looks so peaceful._ He wanted to stay in bed with her, but he had things to take care of before she woke up. He rolled out of bed and straightened himself out. Ed went through his morning routine; showering and eating breakfast, before going over to the phone and dialing an old friend. After the operator connected to him, he heard the smooth voice of Riza Hawkeye in his ear.

"Edward, why are you calling so early?"

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything Lieutenant."

"You know I'm not a Lieutenant anymore."

"Old habit I guess, anyway is there a way I could come visit you for a little bit? It's sort of important."

The line was silent for a few moments before Riza responded. "Sure, come on over."

"Thanks."

They both hung up and after Ed got his shoes on, he head out and quickly made his way over to Riza's. It took him a little longer than usual to get there because it'd been awhile since he'd gone to her apartment, but he eventually got there. After the second knock on her door, Riza answered. Her hair was cut short, but overall she looked the same, her dog Black Hayate panting happily by her leg.

"Come on in." she said, scooting over to give him room.

Ed stepped into her apartment and went into the small living area, taking a seat at her table. She soon sat across with him with two steaming mugs of coffee, pushing one over to him which he accepted graciously.

"So what'd you need Edward?"

He quickly told her about the whole situation with Cecelia and Gretchen's husband Brent, telling her every bit of information he knew. Ed had his clenched fists under the table as he retold the events that led to Cecelia having to use a crutch.

"And she is having trouble telling me about this stuff because she's worried about her friend. I mean I sort of understand it, but it still annoys me because I'm supposed to protect her. But how can I do that when she won't tell me what's going on? So I was wondering… would it be a good idea for her to carry a gun?" he asked.

Riza nodded. "I've met Cecelia before and she's a small young woman, even if she was trained in combat she'd have trouble taking him down. So yes, I feel that she should carry a gun."

The older woman stood and retreated down a small hallway for a few minutes before returning with a box. She set it on the table and pulled off the lid. A plain gun sat at the bottom.

"Take this one to her. It's a basic gun and it's easy to use. Just point and shoot really, but I really doubt she'll have to use it."

Ed nodded in agreement. "Yeah, hopefully I'll be there to take care of any situations where a gun would need to be used. But for safety reasons I want her to use it."

He covered the box back up and stood, tucking the box under his arm. Ed drew Riza in for a quick hug. _Man, I remember when she used to be taller than me. _ He released her and smiled.

"Thank you Riza, I really appreciate it."

"No problem Ed, you be sure and take care of that girl." She said before showing him out the door.

Ed returned to his apartment in no time and was greeted by the sight of Cecelia and Al eating oatmeal at the table. He walked right up to them and set the box down on the table, sliding it across the surface over to Cecelia. She curiously pulled off the lid and to Ed's dismay, Cecelia's smile quickly faded into a frown.

"What's this for?" she asked, putting the lid back on.

"It's for you."

She shook her head. "I don't want that."

He sighed and sat down. "Come on Cecelia, it's just for safety reasons."

"I don't care, I don't want to be carrying anything that could potentially kill someone." she snapped.

"So does that mean you don't want to be around Gretchen? Cause her husband could potentially kill you too."

Her lips creased into an angry line and she was silent for awhile. Ed looked over to Al for help and the younger man simply nodded.

"Cecelia, he's right you know. You're so small and that man could easily hurt you. Ed and I just want you to have a way to protect yourself." Al said softly.

Ed reached across the table and grabbed her hand. "Please just keep the gun with you, that is all I'm asking for. I don't plan on ever letting you get into a situation where you'd need to use it, but just knowing that you have means of protecting yourself just sets me at ease." He said, hoping his guilt trip was working.

"Do it for me?" he asked for good measure.

Cecelia groaned. "Alright fine, I'll keep the stupid gun in my bag but don't expect me to use it."

Ed smiled. "Thank you Cecelia."

She grumbled into her oatmeal in response.

The three of them spent the rest of their day catching up or simply strolling around Central. They ate lunch at a quaint little bistro and shopped around for a little bit. Cecelia got a cute little sundress which she was excited to wear when summer came around. It was a good day for the three of them, it was a good bonding experience and while they were eating dinner later on, they got all the details of what Al planned on doing in Central while he was here. Cecelia was pleased to hear he was thinking about moving out to Central. She liked Al and getting to see him more would be a treat. When bed time rolled around, they each went through their bed time rituals before settling into their beds.

That night Ed went to sleep with a smile.

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><p>Dun Dun Dun, Cecelia has a gun now. OOOOH. Hope you all liked it and pleeeease leave a review cause I like them which means I like you. Awkward.<p> 


	34. Chapter 34

Open Up

Alright guys, sorry this is so short and that it's kind of a filler. But it's funny so that makes up for it. I already have the next chapter started so it will be up by tomorrow. Enjoy and review!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia, Ellie, and Gretchen.

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><p>A week had passed and Cecelia was back in tip top shape, no longer using her cane anymore nor was she limping. She walked slower because that area was still a little sore, but other than that she was perfectly fine. Cecelia was anxious to be working at the bar again because she was tired of being stuffed in the apartment with Ed an Al. As much as she loved those two boys, they had started to get on her nerves with their need to be helpful. They would grab mugs from low shelves for her when she easily could have grabbed it herself or they would fluff her pillows when they were just fine the way they were.<p>

"They're too helpful…" she said to herself at the table.

At the moment she was home alone. The Elric brothers were out searching for an empty lot for Al's clinic. Cecelia had only gotten a few details, but she was pretty sure Al was going to be staying out in Central and opening a sort of clinic where he could help the injured with his Alkahestry. She was happy that'd she would get to see Al more often. _If only we could get Winry to come out here too… _Cecelia pushed away from the table and walked to the front door. She stepped into a pair of sandals; it was early May and it was the perfect weather for sandals, and walked outside, taking a deep breath of the fresh spring air. She strolled merrily down the sidewalk, politely saying hello to people she recognized. Since she'd been in Central, Cecelia had become acquaintances with people who were in the area or people who owned the shops she frequently visited. As she walked passed a book shop, she peeked into the window and saw a copy of her book.

"That's what I like to see." she said smugly.

Deciding to boost her ego, she turned around and entered the book shop. She went up to the cashier and pointed towards her book.

"That's uh…a cute little book there." she said in a gruff voice.

"Which one are you talking about?" he asked.

"The one with the cats."

"Oh that one, yeah it's a new children's book by some woman named Cynthia Woodman or something."

"Cecelia." she corrected.

"Hm?"

"The author's name is Cecelia Wheelright." she said, masking her irritation with the cashier. "Anyway, how's the book been doing?"

"Pretty good I guess, I mean it's new, but since the cover has those cats it's been attracting attention from the kids. It's fairly popular I'd say."

Cecelia patted the cashier's shoulder. "Good to hear."

With that said she spun on her heel and exited the shop with a triumphant smirk on her features. Cecelia walked around for awhile longer before returning to the apartment around three in the afternoon. Al was seated on the couch flipping through a medical book and he smiled when he saw her.

"Hey there Cecelia." he greeted.

"Hey precious, how did the hunt go?" she asked.

"It didn't go too well." He mumbled, irritated that Cecelia still called him by weird pet names.

"Well don't give up yet, there are plenty of places around Central for you, but you just need to find them. And where's Ed?"

"Ed had to go on a business trip." Al answered quickly.

"Really? He never told me about a trip."

"Yup, he got a call from his boss and he said it was urgent, but Ed will be home in a few days."

Cecelia shrugged. "I hope he has a good time then."

Cecelia and Al hung out together until she had to go to work. She hugged him before she left and she quickly made her way to the bar. The moment she was inside the bar, Ellie was on her like a moth on a light. Ellie grabbed her arm and pulled her behind the counter.

"You'll never guess what happened." She said.

"Tell me."

"I was talking with Gretchen today and she told me that she was pregnant and this guy we knew when we were younger is the father!"

Cecelia gasped. "No way, I never knew she had it in her." She couldn't tell Ellie that she'd already known this information for awhile now because it would break her heart.

"I know right? She also told me that she was going to try and break it off with Brent as soon as possible."

"Do you think she'll actually do it?" Cecelia asked.

"She's going to have to because she is going to start showing soon and Brent is going to flip a lid when he finds out. For the sake of her life as well as the baby's life, she'd better get out of there as soon as possible."

Cecelia crossed her arms over her chest and nodded. "I definitely agree with you, I'm just afraid she's going to wait too long and she'll really get caught in a pickle."

Ellie opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off by Madame Christmas snapping at them to get back at work. Sighing, the two young women went on to take care of their work. But Cecelia would chat with Ellie every time they managed to have some free time.

Meanwhile Ed was hopping off a train at a fairly quiet Rush Valley train station. He carried his suitcase to the Opal Bed and Breakfast where he had a reservation. He had some important business to take care of. After eating a small meal, Ed decided to retire early that night. While he lay in bed, he sighed and turned on his side. It was the first time in a week that he'd slept in a bed by himself. He'd grown so used to Cecelia being with him, that he had some trouble falling asleep. It took some time, but Ed eventually fell asleep, eager for the next day to come because he had an important task that he was determined to take care of.

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><p>Hehe see you all next chapter. You should leave a review.<p> 


	35. Chapter 35

Open Up

Oh boy a new chapter! So I said I this chapter would be up yesterday, but that didn't happen but at least it's up right now! I hope you all really like this one, because I sure did!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia and her family.

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><p>The next morning, Ed woke up with the jitters. He nervously went through his daily routine, but instead of wearing a simple shirt and pants, he dressed a little nicer than usual. He didn't get nervous often, but today was an exception because he had quite the task in front of him. After grabbing a bite to eat downstairs, Ed went back to his room and began pacing. He had a lot on his mind and he didn't want to screw anything up. He stayed cooped up in his room for a few hours before grabbing a bite to eat downstairs and leaving the bed and breakfast. It was around noon when he and there were plenty of people out and about. As Ed walked towards his destination, he stopped by a general store and picked up a bouquet of flowers and the most expensive bottle of wine he could afford. With his purchases in tow, he continued his walk; slower than he usually would have taken, and after twenty minutes he arrived at his destination, The Wheelright house.<p>

Ed adjusted the bouquet and bottle of wine so he could free one of his hands to knock. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, he knocked on the door and waited. He could hear Cecelia's ironically large dog Small fry barking from inside and a few moments later, Cecelia's mother Lisa opened the door.

"Oh Edward, I wasn't expecting you. Please come in." she said, moving over so he could step inside.

Ed handed her the flowers, which she accepted graciously. "I got these for you Mrs. Wheelright."

"Thank you sweetheart and I told you to call me Lisa."

"Who's at the door?" called Cecelia's father from down the hall.

"It's Edward dear."

"Edward who?"

"Cecelia's Edward."

Ed scratched the back of his head and followed Lisa as she went down the hall into the family room. Cecelia's father along with her three brothers sat on the sofa and Ed mentally cursed. _I didn't know her brothers were going to be here! _He greeted her brothers; Ashton, Sam, and Hunter, as well as her father before taking a seat next to Lisa. Richard; Cecelia's dad, pointed at Ed's lap.

"What's that for boy?" he asked.

Ed looked down at the bottle of wine before jumping out of his seat and going to hand it over to Richard.

"I ahh…got this for you."

After Ed handed off the bottle, he returned to his seat and began to twiddle his thumbs in his lap.

"Now if only Cecelia were here, then I'd have the whole family over. Now why don't we all go into the kitchen for coffee so we can catch up?" said Lisa.

They all moved into the kitchen and the men leaned against counters while Lisa bustled around to prepare their coffee. In no time at all, Ed had a steaming cup of black liquid in his hands. He added some sugar and stirred it around for awhile, his eyes darting to each of Cecelia's family members. He sipped on his coffee before setting his cup down on the counter.

_I need to get this over with._

"Mr. and Mrs. Wheelright, I came here to ask you something." Ed said, hoping he appeared confident.

"Go for it."

"I umm…" he stuffed his hands in his pockets, "I wanted to ask your permission for Cecelia's hand in marriage."

Ashton, Sam, and Hunter's coffee simultaneously spewed out of their mouths, but Ed's attention was solely on Cecelia's parents. Lisa was beaming with excitement, which pleased Ed, but her father on the other hand had a blank face. After a few minutes of agonizing silence, he spoke.

"And why do you think you're worthy of marrying my daughter?" he asked.

Lisa opened her mouth to protest, but Ed cut her off before she could speak.

"Because I love her, it's as simple as that. She's a really special girl and I want to be able to take care of her. Yesterday was the first day in awhile that I wasn't with her and it was tough, not seeing her in the mornings really makes things different and a few weeks ago I realized she was the one."

"Oh?"

"We were in Resembool visiting my parents' graves and Cecelia snuck out in the middle of the night and laid flowers down for them. She tried to keep it a secret, but I found out and it really meant a lot to me. It's always been my brother and I, but with your permission, I want to add Cecelia to my family."

They were silent again for awhile.

"You certainly have my blessing Ed; I can't wait for you to become my son-in-law." Lisa said with a soft smile.

"I have one condition." said Richard.

"Name it and I'll make sure it happens." Ed said, feeling better about the whole situation.

"You take care of my little girl, if she ever comes home upset then you'll be in a world of pain."

Ed nodded. "I promise I won't ever hurt her."

"Then you have my blessing."

Ed smiled brightly and Lisa squealed in excitement. Cecelia's brothers rushed him and gave him congratulatory punches until his arms were sore. Ashton clapped him on the back.

"You did good kid; I know how scary it is. I remember when I asked Helen's father for her hand in marriage, I nearly wet my pants."

"I was definitely nervous, but she's worth it." Ed said.

"Have you picked out a ring yet?" Lisa asked.

"Umm yes actually, I do have something."

Ed pulled out a small box from his pocket and opened it to show them the ring. It was a simple 14Kwhite gold band with a ½ carat diamond solitaire ring with the word 'forever' engraved on the inside.

"It was my mother's engagement ring. She gave it to my friend's grandmother to give to me when I was of age. Her actual wedding ring is going to go to my brother when he finds a wife." he explained before passing on the box.

"It's gorgeous, Cecelia will love It." gushed Lisa when she got to look at it.

"Thank you." he said, returning the box to his pocket when it came back around to him.

Ed ended up staying at the Wheelright's house for the rest of the day, discussing things about the wedding. He wasn't really much help though, seeing as he didn't know much about weddings. And he had to ask Cecelia first, before he did wedding planning.

"Be sure to keep us updated with the wedding details and feel free to ask us for help." Lisa said as Ed stood on their porch, ready to retire to the bed and breakfast.

"I promise I will."

The older woman pulled him into a hug which he hesitantly returned. When the embrace was over, he noticed tears in her eyes.

"You'd better be a good husband alright?"

He smiled. "I swear on my life I will."

After a few more goodbyes, Ed returned to the bed and breakfast and got into bed with a huge smile.

_Mom…Dad…I hope you guys are proud._

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><p><em><em>I love weddings! How exciting. I'll update as soon as I can, but I've got finals this week so I'll be a little busy! Review?


	36. Chapter 36

Open Up

Oh man, this is my last day of finals until break so that means I can update this story more than I have been. Yipee! I hope you all like this chapter.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia.

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><p>Over the next few days, Cecelia's good mood slowly deteriorated because of Ed's absence. She missed waking up next to him and hearing his silly jokes and seeing him with his nose stuffed in a book. As she walked around the apartment still in her pajamas; despite it being three in the afternoon, Al decided to intervene.<p>

"You know Cecelia, just because Ed's away right now doesn't mean you should act like a slob."

She looked up from her bowl of porridge. "Oh hush, what do you know?"

"That if you exclude the times you've had to work; you've been in your pajamas since Ed's been gone."

"You're right, I'm pathetic." she groaned.

Al walked over to the table and patted her shoulder. "You're not pathetic you're just…eager to see brother again and you've forgotten to groom yourself."

Cecelia rolled her eyes. "You're so sweet." she said sarcastically.

She stood and put her dirty dish in the kitchen sink before retreating to hers and Ed's bedroom. She pulled out a fresh change of clothes and went into the bathroom to wash up. '_Man this water feels good' _she thought as the hot water slid down her body in the shower. Cecelia washed her hair and her body thoroughly and shaved her legs which had gotten a little unruly. After she was all dry and clean, she dressed in a yellow shirt with white shorts and braided her hair into a nice side pony tail.

"How do I look?" she asked Al when she stepped out of the bathroom.

"Much better, you look good in yellow Cecelia." he complimented.

"You're such a charmer Alphonse."

"Oh, while you were in the shower Ellie called you, she said they needed you down at the bar as soon as possible. Apparently someone is sick."

Cecelia smacked her forehead and groaned. Today was one of her nights off and she planned on spending the night brainstorming ideas for a new book, but if she needed to go in to work then she'd do it. She pulled on her work shoes, gave Al a quick hug, and ran out the door. About ten minutes later she ended up at the bar and when Ellie saw her, she pulled Cecelia over to the counter.

"So who's sick?" she asked.

"Catherine is, she has some sort of stomach virus."

"Ugh that must be crummy, I hate stomach aches."

Cecelia and Ellie ended up chatting the day away while they worked their shifts. Usually they didn't get to chat much because Madame Christmas would be harking at them, but the older woman didn't seem to mind this time. By the time Cecelia's shift ended around ten, she was tired with aching feet. She usually didn't work seven hour shifts and the one tonight had been the first one in at least three months that she'd had to work. She dragged her feet as she walked home and it took her longer than usual to get home. When she arrived, there was a little note on the door from Al.

_Hi Cecelia! Ed came home today so if you're reading this note then we are out eating dinner. _

_We'll bring you home something, I promise._

_Love, Al_

She frowned.

"That's not fair, I want to go out to dinner." she whined as she stepped inside, but her frown fell when she noticed the change in the apartment.

There were tall candles lining the counters and the light from their flames lit the room nicely. On the floor there was a trail of dark red rose pedals leading towards the back room. Cecelia scratched her head.

"What the heck is this?" she asked as she started following the trail which led to the bathroom which was decorated as well.

Only two candles were on the bathroom counter, but the bathroom was small so it was enough to light the room. There were also rose petals on the ground. The bath tub was filled with steaming water with rose petals floating on top. The whole room smelled of roses and strawberries. Cecelia shrugged before stripping off her clothes and carefully sliding into the steaming water.

"I'm just going to assume this was done for me since they left and had dinner without me." 

Ed and Al waited eagerly in Al's room for Cecelia to come home from work. The older Elric brother arrived back in Central around five and quickly explained his plan for proposing to Cecelia to his younger brother. He'd called the bar earlier that day and spoke to Ellie, convincing her to call Cecelia in for work so he could decorate the apartment. Around the time Cecelia usually came home, Ed drew a bath and made it all nice. He'd tied the ring around the neck of the rubber duck that was in the bath using a silver ribbon. When he heard the front door open, his heart started thumping loudly from anticipation and Al had to sit in front of his bedroom door so Ed wouldn't ruin the surprise. When they heard the door to the bathroom shut, Ed was finally allowed to leave the room.

"Good luck brother, I'd love to stay up with you to celebrate but I have a meeting about an open lot very early in the morning." Al whispered before retiring for the night.

Ed nodded and stuffed his hands in his pockets when he was alone. It felt like time had stopped as he waited for Cecelia to come out, but after waiting what felt like twenty years, he finally heard a loud squeal from the bathroom. Just as he got down on one knee, the door swung open revealing a clearly distraught Cecelia in only a little towel. _Now isn't the time to have perverted thoughts. _She flung herself down into his arms and instead of hearing cries of joy, Ed heard a loud sob. _…does she really not want to marry me?_

"Cecelia what's wrong?" he managed to ask, hoping he'd successfully masked his disappointment.

"I-I-I was in the bath and I s-s-saw a big…big…s-spider!"

"You're kidding right?" he asked, pulling her up off the ground.

She frowned and crossed her arms over her barely covered chest. "You know how much I hate spiders."

"But Cecelia it's just a little bug, it's not going to hurt you."

"You're right, it would have killed me."

Ed patted her head and stepped into the bathroom which now had a wet floor due to Cecelia's flailing around. He leaned over and plucked the rubber duck out of the water and returned to Cecelia, drying it off on his shirt as he went. He got down on one knee and the angry look on her face quickly melted away.

"I know that we've only known each other for about six months, but I know that you're the one for me. So...

Cecelia Marie Wheelright, will you marry me?"

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><p>Dun Dun Dun<p> 


	37. Chapter 37

Open Up

I love being on winter break. It means I have way too much time on my hands which also means I get to update the crap out of this story. My goal is to finish it up by the time school starts up again. I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia, Ellie, Gretchen and the plot.

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><p>Cecelia's breath got caught in her throat and she looked down at Ed with wide eyes. <em>H-he wants to get…married? He wants to marry me?<em> Her heart was thumping hard in her rib cage and she could hear its heavy beats in her wasn't until she noticed the smile on Ed's lips falter a bit that she realized that she'd been quiet for far too long.

"Are…are you serious?"

He nodded. "As serious as I've ever been."

"Even though I tease you all the time?"

"I still love you Cecelia. I love that you make fun of me and you can take it when I tease you back. I love that you care so much about other people. I love that you sometimes talk in your sleep and I love that you sing really loudly when you're in the shower. I love everything about you and nothing is going to make that change. So what do you say Cecelia?"

She nodded shyly. "Yes…I'll marry you Ed."

Her fingers trembled as he untied the ribbon that held the ring to the rubber duck's neck and slid it onto her left ring finger. As soon as the ring was on, she squealed and threw herself into his arms, the force of it knocking him on his back.

"We're going to get married!" she cried as she planted numerous kisses all over his face.

Ed laughed. "I'm glad you're excited, you were quiet for awhile so I thought you were going to say no."

They rolled around on the ground in each other's arms with their lips locked together for awhile longer until they both realized that things were getting a little too heated for the hallway. She could feel the strain in his pants pressing against her stomach. Ed and Cecelia both stood bashfully with red cheeks, the latter straightening her towel. She cleared her throat.

"Well I'm going to get dressed and I'll see you in the bedroom."

Cecelia scurried into the bathroom and sighed when the door was shut. She pressed her hand against her chest and her heart was still beating a million times a minute, but now it was from excitement.

"Slow down there girl, you have to get married before you can jump his bones." she said to herself.

She bent over and pulled an extra pair of pajamas out from under the sink; she always kept them there just in case, and exchanged her slinky towel for the comfortable cotton. After towel drying her hair, she pulled the plug out of the bathtub, blew out the candles and went into the bedroom. Ed was already in bed and he smiled at her.

"Sorry about earlier in the hallway, I guess I got sort of carried away…" he apologized.

"It's not your fault, I was a part of it too and besides," she paused to wink at him as she slid under the sheets next to him, "I liked it."

With a kiss on his forehead, she rolled on her side and let sleep take her.

The next morning Cecelia was up bright and early, making phone calls to her family announcing her engagement. When she told her mother, she cried loudly into the phone and nearly broke Cecelia's ear drum. It was around noon when she was finally done with all her announcements. Al poked his head in.

"Are you all done on the phone Cecelia?" he asked.

"Mhmmm, so did help Ed plan this?" she gestured to a few rose pedals that weren't picked up.

"Ed came up with everything, but I helped him light all the candles and stuff."

Al looked at her hand and smiled. "It's very pretty and I'm glad you have the ring, it was our mother's ring you know?"

"Was it really?"

He nodded.

"I promise that I'll take very good care of it, now Alphonse how did your meeting this morning go?"

He smiled. "I think it went pretty well, they said they would give me a call back. Would you like to see it?"

"Sure."

After they had their shoes on, Al led her outside and they went across town to a vacant little shop. Cecelia pressed her face against the front window so she could get a peek inside. It was dirty and dusty with a lone table and chair inside.

"It may look shabby now, but if I get it then I'll make it look really nice." Al explained.

"Ed and I will be there to help."

They looked around awhile longer before leaving the vacant store and just walking around. The weather was nice today and they didn't want to spend the day cooped up inside the apartment. Cecelia and Al peered into windows and viewed cute little trinkets. Just as Cecelia was about to enter a shop that specialized in women's clothing, a familiar voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Gretchen?"

She turned and saw her pregnant friend walking with the man who always had a cigarette in his mouth. _What was his name again? Joan? Jacob? _Gretchen waved and for the first time in awhile, showed a true smile. The two women embraced.

"Damn Al, I haven't seen you in a long time." said the cigarette man.

"I agree, but now I'm here to stay. How have you been Havoc?" Al said, shaving his hand.

"You two know each other?" Gretchen and Cecelia asked in unison.

Havoc nodded. "Sure, I ran into Alphonse and his brother a lot when I was still in the military and the boys were getting their bodies back."

"Their bodies?" Gretchen asked.

"A story for another time," Cecelia said when she saw Al frown, "so how are you doing prego?"

"Don't call me that and things have been going well. I broke it off with Brent and I've filed for divorce."

Cecelia clapped. "That's great news, I'm glad you got rid of that pig."

"Mhmmm, I've been a lot happier now that I've been staying with Jean. Right now the paper work is being filed, but it will be official soon."

"I'm really happy for you Gretchen."

"Oh Havoc, did you know that Edward just got engaged?" Al asked, elbowing Cecelia lightly.

"Did he really? And who's the lucky lady?" he asked.

Cecelia raised her hand. "Guilty as charged."

Gretchen grabbed her hand and looked at the ring before hugging her again. "Congratulations Cecelia, I'm very happy for you. Do you mind if I tell Ellie?"

"That's fine with me."

" Have you thought about a date or anything like that?"

Cecelia scratched her chin. "Well no… I mean he asked me last night after all."

"That doesn't matter; you need to start thinking about this stuff right now."

"Calm down, the moment I come up with something I'll tell you."

"I'll be holding you to that I hope you know. I didn't get to plan my wedding so I want to help you out, that way I can at least plan a wedding. It doesn't have to be mine. But Jean and I need to head out now; I have a doctor's appointment to get to."

The four of them said their goodbyes and went their separate ways. Al and Cecelia hung out for awhile longer before turning back and returning to the apartment. When they got there, Ed was seated at the dining room table with papers all around him.

"Hey you guys, where have you been all day?" he asked.

"Future sibling bonding." she answered.

"I don't think that's how it works Cecelia." Al said.

"Sure it does, I'm going to be your sister-in-law and that has the word sister in it. That means we're going to be siblings."

Cecelia walked over to the table and sat across her fiancée. "

"So I ran into Gretchen today-"

Ed cut in. "How is she doing?"

"She's doing alright; she's in the middle of divorcing her psycho husband. But she was telling me that I was supposed to start planning stuff for our wedding right away."

"But we haven't even been engaged for a day."

"That's what I was saying, but she insisted that I start today. So first and for most, do you have a preference for when we have the wedding?"

He shrugged. "Not really, I would just like it to be in Resembool."

"I would like that to…why don't we shoot for this September."

Ed spewed his water out of his mouth. "You want to plan a wedding in three months?"

She nodded. "I want to get married while it's still warm."

"We can always wait for next year."

Cecelia shook her head. "I don't want to wait though."

"Alright then, we're getting married in September."

She smiled. "Besides, planning a wedding can't be that hard."

Cecelia was in for quite the surprise.

* * *

><p>Good for Gretchen, but this won't be the last time we see her crazy husband Brent. Dun Dun Dun. See you all next chapter and I hope you all drop a review if you can.<p> 


	38. Chapter 38

Open Up

I have been updating beast lately and I feel good about it. So I hope you all really like this chapter, towards the end it starts talking about some adult-ish stuff so if you don't like it then skip it. I hope you all like this chapter.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia, Gretchen, Ellie and the plot

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><p>Cecelia peeked outside the window to get a peek at the pleasant almost summertime June day. It had been a month since Ed had proposed to her and with the wedding in September; she was up to her knees in wedding planning. She'd enlisted Ellie, Gretchen and believe it or not, Alphonse to be her wedding planning crew and with their help things were getting done, but there was still plenty for her to do. On that particular day, Al had her cooped up in the apartment making the invitations with the most delicate hand writing she could muster. After finishing up the tenth invitation, her hand was beginning to cramp. She set down her ink pen and looked outside again.<p>

"So one little break isn't going to kill me." she whispered before quietly getting up and tiptoeing towards the door.

She slowly opened the door to ensure no noise was made and had one foot out the door when someone grabbed the back of her shirt collar and dragged her in.

"Oh no you don't; you've got to get these done today." Al said.

Cecelia clawed at the door and in a futile attempt to return to the outside world.

"But Al I don't wanna!" she whined.

"I'm sorry but you have to, it needs to be finished."

"Is it too late to move the wedding?"

"Yes."

"Why do I have to do all of the wedding stuff by myself?"

"Brother is doing stuff too you know."

"Oh please, he gets to hang out in Resembool and eat food that Winry made."

"It's not my fault that put him in charge of the food and cake."

Cecelia frowned. "Alphonse, would you like to go to my wedding?"

"Of course."

"Well then be quiet or I'll un-invite you."

Cecelia plopped down in her chair and continued with her invitations, shooting Al; who was carefully cutting out templates for paper lanterns, a dirty look after each invitation she finished. Cecelia was half way through her stack of invitations when her savior; in the form of Ellie, burst into the apartment with a Cheshire-esque grin.

"Ellie!"

She ran into her arms and hugged her. "You have no idea how glad I am to see you."

Ellie patted her head. "Jeez Al, you must be running her ragged."

Al walked over and hugged Ellie as well. "I'm not running her ragged; I'm just making sure she stays on task. We can't afford to dilly dally because there are a lot of things that still need to be done."

"I completely agree with you, but I'm going to need to borrow her for a little bit. Wedding dress stuff to take care of."

"Alright but don't be out too long okay? I really want to get these invitations out as soon as possible." he said with a slight frown.

"Never fret my dear; we'll be back in a jiffy." Ellie slowly led Cecelia out the door and soon they were out of the apartment.

Cecelia dramatically sucked in a large breath. "So what are we really doing today?"

"I'm being serious; we're doing wedding dress stuff. They want to do a fitting today."

"No way, they got that done really fast. I remember when we first picked out the dress and stuff, they nearly passed out when I told them I needed it by September."

Ellie and Cecelia both thought back on the day when they first visited the bridal boutique.

"_Guys are we seriously looking at dresses this early? I got engaged a week ago, we don't need to be worrying about dresses right now." Cecelia complained to Ellie and Gretchen. _

"_Oh hush, time is of the essence and we need to get started right away." Gretchen said._

_The three of them arrived at the boutique and a hostess came to their assistance right away. With their hostess, they walked around and viewed dresses and eventually came across the perfect one. It was a floor length dress made from satin in a pale ivory color, with an intricate lace design around the bust. It even came with a matching lace veil. The hostess allowed Cecelia to try it on and with some alterations it would be perfect. _

"_It looks lovely on you, how early would you like to have it? Does December sound okay?" asked the hostess. _

"_Oh, my wedding is in September." Cecelia said brightly._

_The hostess laughed, but it soon faded away when she noticed that no one else was laughing. _

"_Y-you're being serious?"_

_Cecelia nodded. _

"_Excuse me for a moment."_

_They watched as the hostess went over to other employees and began to frantically explain the situation. After watching the little show, the hostess returned._

"_We will definitely have your dress ready by September, but for such a quick order it will cost a little bit more than it would have." _

Cecelia laughed from the thought. "That lady's face was so funny."

"Mhmm, you'd of thought we told her you wanted the dress for the next day or something."

The two joked around for awhile, but stopped when they arrived at the boutique and the same hostess greeted them. She led them into the back where Cecelia tried on her dress. This time it fit her like a glove. It was shortened so she could walk comfortable, but still long enough to flow around her and cover her heels and it was snug around her waist, accentuating her light curves.

"What do you think?"

"It looks awesome; Ed isn't going to be able to take his eyes off of you."

Cecelia changed back into her regular clothes and handed the dress back over to the hostess who put it in a dress carrier and hung it up in the back. Cecelia handed over a large amount of money to the hostess to pay for her dress. _Thank God the royalties from my book came in; this dress is costing me an arm and a leg! _Ellie and Cecelia left the boutique with a date set to pick up the dress in September and the latter turned to return to the apartment, but was stopped when the former grabbed her shoulder.

"We have to run one more errand."

"Uhh sure."

Ellie led the way as they weaved through the busy sidewalks of Central. With all of the nice weather, people were spending a lot of time outside which meant it was harder to get around town without bumping into someone. Eventually they arrived at some shop that Cecelia had never heard of. It had a frilly looking sign, but the windows were dark. They both stepped inside and Cecelia nearly choked at the sight of the stores contents.

"L-l-l….L-l-l…L-l-ling-g-gerie?"

Mannequins wearing all sorts of lingerie were placed throughout the store and Cecelia's cheeks were burning with embarrassment. She grabbed onto Ellie's shirt and gave a sharp tug.

"Why are we here?"

"You're going to seduce Ed of course." she said with a manner-of-fact tone.

"But I don't want something flashy for the honeymoon." Cecelia said, gesturing to a particularly scandalous mannequin.

"Oh honey, this isn't for your honeymoon."

"Then why are we here?"

"Wait…are you telling me you and Ed haven't had sex yet?"

Cecelia twiddled her thumbs. "Well…no we haven't."

"I mean you want to right? Have you two done anything intimate at all?"

"We have thank you very much." she said snootily.

Ever since the night Ed proposed to her and they ended up having a heavy make out session in the hall way, their sexual desires began to appear and they'd done quite a few things in the bedroom but they still hadn't sealed the deal.

"We were going to wait until the wedding you know…"

"Don't be so old fashioned Cecelia; plenty of people are having sex before they're married."

"Have you had sex yet?"

"Heck no, but I have friends who are engaged and there isn't anything wrong with having sex before you're married because you're going to get married anyway, so what's the big problem? You want to have sex with him right?"

"Ellie this is really awkward, do we have to talk about this in the store?"

"Don't avoid my question you fat baby."

"Alright fine, I do."

"Then go for it! I highly doubt Ed is going to have a problem with it so all you have to do is initiate it because from what I've noticed, he'll be too gentlemanly to do it, which is why we're here."

"Why couldn't you have just said that in the first place?"

"It's not my fault that you're asking so many questions." Ellie said before walking away.

"Jerk."

They ended up spending a good half an hour in the lingerie before Cecelia ended up purchasing a yellow nightie with matching panties. She bashfully kept the bag against her chest as they both walked back to the apartment so people wouldn't see it and think she was a total pervert.

"Don't forget about the party next week." Ellie said when they arrived at the apartment.

"What party?"

"Didn't I tell you, I'm throwing an engagement party for you and Ed next week?"

"…no you did not tell me."

"Oh. Well there is a party next week for you two and I expect you to be there."

"Alright, well we'll be there."

They both said their goodbyes and Cecelia entered the house. Al was still cutting out templates for lanterns, but his to do stack had gotten a lot smaller and he looked like he was close to being done.

"How did your errands go?" he asked.

"Good, I got to try on the dress today and it looked great."

"That's good news," he pointed to her bag, "what else did you get?"

She dashed into her bedroom and stuffed it under the bed.

"N-nothing." she said when she returned.

"Hmm…okay, don't forget that you need to finish those invitations today."

"Yes master."

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><p>Hehehe how scandalous. And if you couldn't tell, there is going to be a lemon for this story. But I will post it as it's own little story so that way people who don't want to read it don't have to cause it's sort of important, but not really. The next few chapters will only sort of mention it, so no worries. See you all soon!<p> 


	39. Chapter 39

Open Up

Okay, so I basically suck a lot. I planned on finishing this story over winter break, but then I went to my mother's house and she does not have internet. So I basically didn't get anything done. SORRY! By the way, the lemon for this chapter is posted as it's own story so check it out if you're interested. But I hope you all like this chapter and I'll apologize now for any errors. It's two in the morning after all. Enjoy!

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia, Ellie, Gretchen, and Brent

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><p>Ed anxiously exited the train station with his suitcase in hand and quickly began to make his way home to his fiancée and brother. He'd been in Resembool for a week to work out the menu for the wedding with Winry who; with the help of Mrs. Hughes, would be preparing all of the food. After consulting with Cecelia, they decided that instead of having a wedding cake they would be having multiple pies instead. This pleased Ed to no end because Gracia's pies were to die for. He checked his watch as he walked and cursed, it was nine thirty in the evening, a lot later than he'd been hoping for. Ed made it the rest of the way home without any issues and opened his apartment door.<p>

"Hey guys, I'm home." he called, but got no response.

He noticed a small sticky note on the coffee table when he entered the living room. He picked it up and scanned the little note.

_Welcome home brother, I hope you had a fun time in Resembool. I'm not going to be at the apartment tonight, I'll be staying with a friend. Cecelia should be home though, I'll see you tomorrow though._

_~Alphonse Elric _

Ed crumpled the note and stuffed it in his pocket. He walked through the apartment with his suitcase in hand until he was at his room. He knocked on the door.

"Cecelia, I'm home."

He pushed the door open and his jaw nearly unhinged and fell to the floor. Cecelia was lying on top of the comforter wearing a provocative lacy yellow nightie. Her wavy hair splayed across the comforter and parts of it rest against her bare shoulders. She was asleep and if she hadn't been wearing something so arousing, he would have been in awe with how cute she looked, but cute was not a word he could use to describe his fiancée. _Why is she wearing something so sexy? _As quiet as a mouse, he set his suitcase down, kicked off his shoes and made his way to the bed, but when he sat down, the mattress springs squealed in protest of the new weight. Ed's golden eyes darted down to the sleeping young woman who had begun to move. Her eyes fluttered open and they stared at each other for a moment.

"Oh, you're home."

"Yeah I just got home, uh Cecelia…"

She sat up. "Yes?"

"Why are you wearing something so provocative?" he asked as a cherry red blush spread on his cheeks.

She looked down. "Oh this, do you like it?"

"Well yeah, but why are you wearing it?"

"I wanted to seduce you when you got home, but I fell asleep while I was waiting."

He blinked. "Y-you wanted to seduce me? But why?"

She turned and grabbed his hands in hers. "Because I don't want to wait anymore Ed, I'm ready for this and I know you're ready for it too."

Ed huffed. "How would you know that?"

She gestured towards the swelling in his pants. "You don't think I haven't noticed that before?"

"But that's natural for a guy."

Cecelia sighed. "Do you not want to do this?"

"No no no, of course I want to, but to do it before we're married…isn't that wrong?"

"Ed, do you love me?" she asked.

"You know I do."

Cecelia cupped his cheek. "Then does it really matter when we do it? We both love each other and that's all that really matters. When we have sex isn't going to change that."

Ed leaned forward and pressed a kiss against her lips. "Are you sure about this?"

Grabbing his shoulders, Cecelia leaned back and pulled him with her so that he was now in a straddling position.

"As sure as I'll ever be."

The following morning Ed woke up from a ray of sunshine coming in through the window and beaming right in his face. He yawned and blinked the sleep out of his eyes before turning his head to look at Cecelia. She was curled up against his side still sleeping. And she was naked. He liked that part the most. The events from the previous night rushed his memory and he couldn't help but smile. It was a very good night for him. He took a peek at the clock and noticed that it was eleven thirty in the morning. He decided to get out of bed and do something productive. As carefully as he could, he weaseled out of her grasp and sat up, but the mattress springs screeched again which caused Cecelia to wake up.

"I need to get a new mattress." he grumbled.

"What was that?" she asked in between yawns.

He turned to face her. "Nothing, how did you sleep?"

She smiled. "I had a good night's sleep, you?"

"Same here, it was nice."

Cecelia rolled out of bed and pulled on some pajamas while Ed decided on just wearing his boxers and a shirt. They both went to the dining area and sat at the table.

"So what did you get done while I was gone?" he asked.

"A lot of things actually. I paid for my dress and tried it on and I got bridesmaids dresses figured out. Gretchen's was sort of hard though because who knows what size she'll be by the time the wedding is here. Al finished all of the lanterns and I got all of the invitations done and they're currently at the post office. I went by the florist and took care of all of the bouquets and boutonnieres and I made an appointment for you and the boys to get fitted for tuxedos. We're doing pretty well if I do say so myself."

"That's really good, I feel like a bum. All I did was take care of the food." he said with a chuckle.

"Oh hush, that's just as important. What did you end up picking anyway?"

"Well we both decided on pies and I told Winry to make a bunch of different types of stew and we can have bread and salad with it too."

"Why did you pick stew?"

"I like stew." he said defensively.

"Calm down, I'm not saying it's a bad idea silly."

"Good, so what do we need to work on today?"

"Well today I'm going to pick up all of the table cloths, silverware, napkins, and napkin rings then get those all set up. Then Ellie threw an engagement party for us and that's tonight."

"She did? That was nice of her."

"Mhmmm, she sort of did it out of the blue. But that's all we really have planned for today, want to come with me?"

Ed nodded.

The couple went through their morning routines before going out and picking up their package. Ed ended up having to carry the boxes back home. They spend the better part of the afternoon rolling silverware in the napkins and securing them with the rings. It frustrated Ed that Cecelia's napkin rolls were neat and precise were his were more on the sloppy side, but with her help he managed to roll some nice napkins. They finished with their work around five and at that point they needed to get ready for the engagement party. Cecelia ended up in a navy blue frock and she curled her hair while Ed had on a simple white dress shirt and black slacks. Before they stepped outside, Cecelia made sure to grab her bag. Hand in hand they walked to the bar where the party was being held and when they arrived, they were greeted by a large group people. They both socialized with their friends and snacked on food until Gretchen came up to them.

"Hey you two, having fun?" she asked.

"Absolutely, I'll definitely have to thank Ellie the next time I see her." Cecelia said and Ed nodded.

"Mhmmm, Cecelia can I have a word with you?"

The two women excused themselves and stepped outside.

"What did you need?" Cecelia asked.

"I was hoping you'd come with me to drop off these divorce papers at Brent's house. He only needs to sign them and I can give them back to my lawyer and I'll be a free woman."

Unease immediately settled into Cecelia's being, but she couldn't deny her one of her closest friends. She agreed and they both went inside and Cecelia told Ed what they planned to do while Gretchen went to fetch Jean. Ed shared his displeasure with the idea.

"I don't think that's a good idea Cecelia, it's not safe." he said.

"We're only going to be there for a little bit, it'll be okay."

Ed frowned. "I want to go with you because I don't trust that guy."

"You're more than welcome to come with us."

They met up with Gretchen and Jean and the four of them snuck out of the bar and walked to Brent's house. Jean whistled when they arrived at the lavish house. It stuck out from the neighboring houses because of the decorative items that embellished the house.

"Cecelia and I will go inside and you two will wait out here." Gretchen instructed.

"No, that guy is crazy and I won't allow two women to go in there alone with him." Ed protested.

"I know, but I don't want him to get terribly violent and that's what will happen if I go in with two men. I'm just going to have him sign this and then we'll get out of there." she explained.

Reluctantly Ed nodded and Cecelia gave him a reassuring kiss on the cheek.

"We'll only be a few minutes, so don't worry too much." she said before following Gretchen up the stairs and to the front door.

Gretchen pulled a key from her pocket and slid it into the slot in the doorknob. She unlocked the door and they both went in. Cecelia had a bad feeling in her gut but she ignored it as she trailed behind Gretchen who easily maneuvered through the house despite the lights being off. They found Brent upstairs in his study and Gretchen passed the papers on to him. Cecelia noticed the empty liquor bottles that littered the study and gulped. _I should have let Ed come in with us. _

"What is this?" he asked in a gruff voice.

"They're divorce papers and you need to sign them." Gretchen said, but Cecelia could see how rigid she had become.

"No." he said, throwing the papers in her face.

"Brent please don't make this difficult and sign them. We'll get out of your hair as soon as you do."

He pushed away from his desk with enough force to knock the chair over and faced them, sending them a dark glare. His hand shot out and gripped Gretchen's neck. She began clawing at his hand, trying to make him release her neck.

"I said no, you'll never leave me Gretchen." he hissed.

Cecelia dropped her bag and with all her might, rammed her body against him so that Brent released her and they both fell to the ground. He shoved Cecelia off of him and scurried to his feet, landing a good kick to the woman's gut which knocked the wind out of her. She clutched her stomach as she began to wheeze, trying to suck in a much air as she could. She saw Brent approach Gretchen who had backed up against the wall. He started punching the pregnant woman who turned to hide her stomach, leaving her face open for the blows. _I...I have to keep her safe...the baby._ Slowly Cecelia stood on shaky legs and pulled off her high heeled shoes and took aim at his face, throwing them both at him. One struck his side and the other hit his face, causing him to turn to her.

"Stay out of this!"

He charged towards her looking very determined to catch her. Cecelia spun on her heel and darted out of the room with Brent hot on her heels. She had just reached the stairs when he caught the back of her dress causing her to lose her footing. With a squeal she took a tumble down the stairs and fell on the landing. She gasped and was sure that she was seeing stars as she wearily sat up. _Thank God, my back isn't broken._ Brent grabbed a fist full of her hair and pulled her to her feet. Searing pain rocked through her body as she was forced to stand and she groaned when he pushed her hard against the wall.

"I told you stay out of it, Gretchen is mine you hear me?"

Gathering her courage, Cecelia managed to collect a fair amount of saliva despite her mouth growing dry and spat it in his face. A smirk appeared on her face, but it quickly transformed into a grimace when he rammed her head against the wall. After a few hits against the wall, Cecelia's vision began to fade to black. The last thing she saw before succumbing to the darkness is Gretchen standing at the top of the stairs, pointing something at them.

Ed was pacing outside while he waited with Havoc. The older man reassured him for awhile, but the bad feeling stuck around and it was bothering the hell out f him. He kept shoving his hands in his pockets or fiddling with his belt loops. He stopped when he heard faded thuds from inside the house.

"Did you hear that?" he asked.

"Heard what?"

"Nevermind."

He continued to pace until he heard something that nearly stopped his heart. A gunshot. Sharing a glance with Havoc, they both stormed into the house and Ed's head whipped around until his eyes landed on his fiancée. She was slumped against the wall with a trail of blood coating her face and she wasn't moving.

"Cecelia…" he whispered.

He noticed Brent lying on the ground next to her; he was squirming around in a pool of dark liquid that continued to grow. There was a gunshot wound in his upper thigh. Ed was shaking out of anger and he kicked him in the ribs with his automail leg, hoping he at least broke a rib or two. He registered crying from upstairs where Jean had gone, but his attention was on Cecelia. He moved Brent out of the way and kneeled next to her.

"Cecelia, its okay you can get up now."

Ed started to panic when she didn't move and he lightly gripped her shoulder and shook her, calling her name. He pulled her into his lap and cradled her, feeling a little bit better when he saw that she was still breathing. He held her until paramedics entered the house and he was forced to hand her over to them. He followed them outside and was in awe at how quickly the police force had arrived. His hands balled into tight fists and he clenched his eyes shut. _ How could I have been so stupid? I should have never let her go in there alone. That stupid bastard could have killed her…she had blood on her face damn it. How could I just let her go like that? _Someone side swiped him as they passed him and it brought him back to reality. He jogged over to where they had Cecelia. She was now strapped up on a stretcher and they were rolling it over to the ambulance.

"Are you family?" asked a paramedic after they'd loaded her in.

"Her fiancée."

Ignoring the paramedic, he hopped up into the ambulance and sat on the hard bench, his hand shooting out to grab hers. His thumb traced small circles on the surface of her skin as the ambulance started its short journey to the hospital. Half way through the ride he heard an odd sniffling noise and looked at Cecelia who had woken up. Tears were freely falling from her eyes and she gripped Ed's hand tightly.

"Cecelia, its okay darling. Don't cry please."

He caressed her cheek with his free hand, but it didn't stop the tears from falling.

"Ed…I'm sorry." she said weakly without looking at him.

"It's not your fault Cecelia."

"I'm sorry…I'm sorry… I'm sorry."

Cecelia started to cry much louder than before and Ed couldn't do anything about it, so he just let her cry all the way to the hospital, they unloaded her and Ed followed them inside the hospital. He followed them until a nurse stepped in front of him to stop him.

"You can't go in there sir, they're going to check her out so please wait in the waiting room with the other guests."

Ed tried getting around her, but she continued t get in his way until Ed finally went and took a seat in the waiting room. He wanted to pull his hair out while he waited and it felt like years until a doctor came out and filled him in.

"She's resting right now, but she is going to be okay. She has a sprained ankle and a mild concussion. She'll have to be woken up every couple of hours so we'll just keep her over night just in case." The doctor explained.

"Please, can I see her?"

"I suppose, but only for a few moments."

The doctor led him into Cecelia's room and Ed nearly choked at the sight. She looked way paler due to the lights in the hospital and she was hooked up to machines and her breathing was ragged. Ed immediately went to her side and held her hand like he did in the ambulance.

"Cecelia…I'm the one who should be sorry…I let you down. I promised that I would protect you, but now you're in the hospital. I should have gone inside the house with you…I'm sorry."

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><p>Oh man, what a jerk! DON'T FORGET ABOUT THE LEMON! READ IT IF YOU WANT!<p> 


	40. Chapter 40

Open Up

Ta-da! A new chapter! And I'm sad to say this is the second to last chapter, I'm actually about to start on the last chapter in a few minutes. There will be a sort of epilogue though so that's not bad! I hope you all like this chapter.

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia, Gretchen, Ellie, and Brent.

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><p>It had been a week since the incident at Brent's house and Cecelia was back at the apartment taking care of more wedding planning from the comfort of the couch. With her sprained ankle, she took care of simple things while she sent Ed and Al on errands. Soon their apartment was covered with boxes which held things like table cloths, light fixtures, and center pieces that needed to be sent to Resembool for the wedding. It was decided that Al would head down there mid August to go and deliver all of the items and stay with Winry until it was time for the wedding.<p>

Cecelia was stuffing small trinkets into gift bags for guests when a knock came from the door. She called for Ed who appeared from their bedroom and he answered the door where Gretchen stood. She had bruises on her neck from Brent. The pregnant woman looked flustered and nervous as she entered their apartment.

"Hey Gretchen," Cecelia greeted, "what brings you here?"

"I…I wanted apologize about everything that's happened…it was all my fault. Are you doing alright?"

Cecelia sort of wanted to agree, but knew she couldn't pin the blame on her friend.

"Oh please, don't worry about it. If anything it was a good thing I was there because he would have killed you for sure. And I should be asking you if you're okay, it had to have been scary shooting him."

Ed had filled her in on that part while he was with her at the hospital.

"I'm still a little bit shaken up, but I'll be fine soon enough. And I grazed his leg, he's not dead. Speaking of, I was wondering if you would like to testify against him."

"Do I have to?"

"Well…I'm not really sure?"

They both turned to Ed for an answer, but he simply shrugged.

"I don't really want to, but if I have to then I will." Cecelia said.

"Alright, well you take care of yourself Cecelia and I'll be seeing you around."

With that said, Gretchen left the two alone. Ed joined Cecelia on the couch and tossed an arm over her shoulders.

"But really, how are you doing?" he asked.

She sighed. "I'm alright, I'm just still a little bothered about what happened… I could have died when I fell down the stairs that night. It's all so weird."

He gave her a reassuring squeeze. "I don't know what I would have done if you'd died, I'd be a complete mess. I'm glad you made it out of there."

"You're so sweet, well mister why don't you help me with these gift bags because we've got a lot of them to do still."

A few weeks later, it was July and half way through the month when Cecelia woke up feeling nauseas. At first she decided to just stay in bed until it passed, but after barely two minutes of waiting, she jumped out of bed and sprinted to the bathroom, barely making it to the toilet in time before the contents of her stomach were spewing from her mouth. When she was finished, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and flushed the toilet. She heard noises coming from outside the bathroom and soon Ed was standing in the doorframe looking quite tired. Despite her newly acquired head ache, she couldn't help but smile. His hair was sticking up every which way and he was wearing a dazed look.

"What happened?" he asked.

"I'm not sure; I just woke up and didn't feel very well. It's probably just a stress related thing from all of this wedding madness."

Cecelia pulled herself up off the floor and brushed her teeth until the nasty taste was out of her mouth. Because it was six in the morning and they were already up, they decided to just start their days a little earlier than usual rather than going back to bed. While Ed showered and got ready for work, Cecelia prepared a simple breakfast and soon she was on her own. She cleaned up the dishes and showered before going back into her wedding planning business. With all of the help she was getting from friends and family, things were going according to plan and she was more than pleased with that. But around three in the afternoon she wasn't feeling well again and ended up puking. The rest of the day she was annoyed and when Ed came home, he noticed her sour attitude and she told him that she'd thrown up again. They both concluded that it was just a bug and that it would pass soon, but the following morning she threw up.

"You could always go to the doctor's office and see what's going on with you." Ed suggested while they are breakfast.

"You know what; I think I'm going to do that."

After making a few phone calls, Cecelia had a doctor's appointment at one thirty. When it was time for her to leave, she pulled on sandals and stepped out of the apartment. Almost instantly she was wearing a deep frown. The pleasant spring weather was gone and in its place was blistering heat. With a little bit of jump in her step, she quickly made it to the doctor's office and the cooled building felt nice. She checked in and filled out all of the appropriate paper work and in no time at all she was in her own waiting room, sitting on the patient's chair. After a ten minute wait, a male doctor and got the ball rolling. He asked her typical questions and she told him everything she knew.

"You've been eating correctly, correct Ms. Wheelright?" he asked.

"Mhmm, I've been doing things like I normally do, but yesterday morning I just puked my guts out and it happened again this morning. I just figured it was a stress related thing because I've been planning my wedding." she explained.

The doctor scratched his chin and examined his clip board before speaking again. "I have a general idea as to what may be causing your sickness, if you'll excuse me for a moment."

He left her alone for a bit and returned with a small plastic cup and a large glass of water.

"If you don't mind, I'm going to take a urines sample just outside the room."

Cecelia accepted the cup and water and excused herself to the restroom. Twenty minutes and three glasses of water later, Cecelia filled the cup and handed it off to the doctor.

"Alright thank you Ms. Wheelright, we'll have those results soon and we'll call you as soon as we can."

"Thank you very much doctor and you have a good day."

Cecelia left the doctor's office and after grabbing a glass of juice at a nearby café, she returned home and got back to her wedding work until it was time for her to work on dinner. As she dealt with the light salad, Ed returned home and helped her finish up with the meal. They set the table together before sitting down and eating. About half way through the meal the telephone rang and Ed answered it.

"It's for you Cecelia, it's the doctor."

She got up from the table and answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Ah, hello Ms. Wheelright it's Dr. Johnson calling you back, we've got your results back."

"Alright lay it on me."

"Well Ms. Wheelright, congratulations are in order because you're pregnant."

Cecelia blinked, unsure of what she'd just heard. "Excuse me?"

"You're pregnant."

"What?" she yelled into the phone.

"What's wrong Cecelia?" Ed asked, concern riddled in his voice.

She looked back and smiled. "Oh nothing, don't worry," she turned her attention to the telephone, "thank you very much doctor and goodbye." She hung up the phone before he could say anything more.

"Well what's wrong?"

"It's just a little summer flu, it'll pass on." she lied.

Despite her shock and excitement, she acted calm and collected through dinner.

_I'll tell him after the wedding; it'll be like a present… oh he'll be so excited! _

Now all she had to do was keep this baby a secret for another two months.

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><p>I love babies! I sure hope Cecelia can keep the secret! Anyway, see you all soon and leave a review if you can!<p> 


	41. Chapter 41

Open Up

Oh man, this story is basically finished. I just have one more part to add one and it's all done. BUT I have a treat for you all. So stick around. Anyway I hope you all like this chapter

Typical Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia, Gretchen, and Ellie

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><p>July soon dwindled away and turned to August and now it was crunch time. Everyone was scrambling around to finish everything up for the wedding that was only getting closer and closer. Cecelia was getting all wound up, it was hard for her to keep her pregnancy away from everyone but she wanted it to be a surprise and she was going to do everything she could to keep it that way. One of the most difficult times to keep her secret was when Alphonse left for Resembool so he could get everything set up for them. But it eventually paid off because September finally came and she was absolutely giddy with excitement. Her and Ed got on a train and were off to Resembool.<p>

"Are you excited?" Ed asked when they arrived in his home town.

"Of course I am, it will be the best wedding ever."

"I agree, how does Mrs. Cecelia Elric sound to you?"

"Perfect."

They walked along the long trail until they ended up at the Rockbell house. Cecelia had to dodge Winry's hug because she was sure that the taller girl would have knocked her over and being on her back didn't sound like a good idea even though she was only two months pregnant.

"I haven't seen you in such a long time, I can't believe you're getting married in a week." the blonde cried.

"I know right? Isn't this all crazy?" Cecelia said as they walked inside.

"Now you take care of her Ed or I swear I will mess up your leg." Winry threatened.

"Jeez you don't need to threaten me you gear head."

"Now now children, don't go fighting in my living room you hear?" the woman asked as she hobbled past them.

"Yes Grannie Pinako." They said in unison.

Cecelia's mother and father arrived a few days later and that was things really got into high gear. They'd set up a large tent over the location so everything they set up would be safe just in case it rained. The actual wedding ceremony was taking place down on a field a good while behind Winry's house and the reception would be in her back yard. The women set up the reception area while the men; along with Cecelia's mother, set up all of the chairs for the ceremony. Al was in charge of attaching flowers to the arch and hanging up his paper lanterns and the other's just followed his orders. Things were all going according to plan and soon it was the 15th, the night before their wedding.

Cecelia had just taken a shower and Ed was waiting for her out in the hallway. He pulled her into an embrace and placed a tender kiss on her lips before brushing away a piece of damp brown hair that had fallen into her face.

"Well Cecelia this is it, are you ready?" he asked.

"Yes."

"I love you."

He kissed her once more before leaving her in the hall way and meeting Al outside. He was going to be staying elsewhere for the night because Winry insisted that it was bad luck to be anywhere near the bride on the night before the wedding. Cecelia scurried into her bedroom and lay giddily in her bed, her hands resting on her stomach. She wasn't exactly showing, it just looked like she'd gained some weight and she had to go to her bridal boutique and ask them to have her dress taken out a little just in case. She turned to the clock and frowned, it was nine thirty and she was still up. _I'm never going to get to bed. _She lay in bed for another hour until sleep finally took her.

The next morning was mayhem. Winry and Cecelia's mother woke the bride to be up bright and early to start getting her ready. They banished Cecelia to the bathroom where she had to bathe in perfumed water. After she had on her undergarments and a robe, her mother pulled her into the next room where she would be getting her hair done. As her mother towel dried her hair, the door open and in walked Ellie and Gretchen who had just arrived. Together, the bridesmaids; Ellie, Winry, and Gretchen, did their hair and makeup as well as help Cecelia deal with hers. She ended up with her hair curled and the pieces on the side of her were woven intricately and pinned to the back of her head. Cecelia looked at herself in the mirror and gaped.

"Wow…I look like a princess."

"You are a princess, today is your special day." Winry said from her side of the room as she added a bit of lip stick.

The minutes were ticking away and soon it was time for Cecelia to put on her wedding dress. She pulled on the thin slip and with help from her friends; she stepped into her dress and pulled it on. Her mother zipped it up and fluffed out the back of the train. _So it's a little snug, but I can handle that._ Cecelia thought as she examined herself. She was quite pleased with the way she looked and when she was done ogling at herself, she helped everyone else get dressed. The bridesmaids dresses were a nice shade of blue and Cecelia thought they all looked quite lovely. All of the women left the room that they'd gotten ready in and went down stairs to the kitchen where all of the bouquets were. After making sure everything was in check, Cecelia took a peek out the window and grinned. The reception area looked lovely with all of the center pieces and table cloths laid out. They chatted until around two when Cecelia's father came in and announced that it was almost time to go. All of the women bustled around to do last minute cosmetic things and Cecelia's mom stuck the veil on top of the bride's head and made sure her face was covered. Next thing she knew she was outside arm and arm with her father and watching all of her friends walk down the aisle. She sucked in a deep breath to try and calm herself down. Her dad gave her a reassuring squeeze.

"Calm down sweetheart, you'll do good."

"Do you really think so dad?"

"I know so, that young man is very lucky to have you."

"Thanks, now all you've got to do is get me down there without tripping."

"I would never let you accidentally fall, but I may intentionally push you." he teased.

"Oh thanks dad…wait what?'

Before she could argue with him, their signal to walk down the aisle came in the form of the wedding march and they started going. Cecelia's breath got caught in her throat as she walked, everyone was standing and staring at her but her attention was focused on Ed. He looked as sharp has ever. His tux fit him perfectly and the look of pure adoration and love in his eyes made her heart flutter. When she arrived at the end, her father gave her away and she was soon standing in front of her future husband.

The ceremony went by in a flash and she said her vows perfectly, but she also managed to drop Ed's ring when she tried putting it on his finger. This earned a laugh from all of their guests. But soon her favorite came up when the priest said,

"I now pronounce you Mr. and Mrs. Edward Elric; you may now kiss your bride."

"Oh I will."

Ed looped an arm around her waist and pulled her flush against him. She couldn't help but blush, but her embarrassment disappeared immediately when his lips were pressed against hers, their first kiss as a married couple.

"Oh I love you."

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><p>I love weddings because you get to eat a ton of really good food and have dance parties. I hope you guys like this and i'll see you soon.<p> 


	42. Chapter 42

Open Up

Well everyone, this is the last chapter for this story. I can't believe it's over! I really want to thank everyone who has stuck with this story and left me reviews, this story is for you all and I really hope you all enjoyed it.

Don't forget to read the very end for the surprise.

Final Disclaimer: I don't own FMA, but I do own Cecelia

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><p>The rest of the wedding went on without any major issues. As soon as the ceremony was over, Ed and Cecelia went to the reception area and had their first dance. She accidentally stepped on his foot a few times, but it was his automail leg so it didn't bother him. When Cecelia and Ed cut the cake, she grabbed a large part of her piece and stuffed it in his face. He gladly returned the favor and they both ended up with cake covered faces. A lot of their friends came and congratulated. Mustang clapped Ed hard on the shoulder; he had Riza by his side.<p>

"You did good Edward, she's a keeper that one. Who'd of thought you would have been able to find such a nice girl. I figured you'd be a bachelor forever." he said with a sly grin.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ed snapped.

"It's just that your personality could scare off any girl within a one hundred foot radius."

Roy continued to rile the poor young man up until Riza intervened.

"Now now, it's his wedding day. You shouldn't mess with him too much."

The three talked for awhile longer until Ed went to join Cecelia who was speaking with his former teacher, Izumi Curtis and her husband Sig.

"L like your old teacher, she was telling me about how you used to be a huge troll when you were little." Cecelia said with a laugh.

"Hey, I was not a troll."

Izumi shot him a look which to this day struck fear into him.

"I mean I was, you know I didn't mean… I just." he fumbled with his words before Cecelia came to the rescue.

"Well it was very nice meeting you Mrs. Curtis and I swear Ed and I will come visit you and your husband."

They went their separate ways and continued with their wedding merriment. Cecelia was quite embarrassed when Ed sat her down so he could retrieve the garter on her thigh, but he enjoyed taking his sweet time and making his wife squirm. But later on when Cecelia got to throw her bouquet to all of the single ladies, she accidentally threw it a little too hard and it landed in Al's lap. Everyone in attendance really got a kick out of that. Time slipped past them and soon it was time for Ed and Cecelia to head out so they could get their honey moon started. They went to the front and into their new car that Cecelia's father graciously gave them as a wedding gift and they drove off, but not before Ed tied a blind fold over Cecelia's eyes.

"Where are we going Ed?" she asked.

"It's a surprise, I got a present for you."

He drove her for awhile longer and soon Cecelia felt the car lurch to a stop. Ed hopped out of the car and quickly got on the other side and helped her out of the car. Holding his hand, Cecelia followed him for a little bit and stopped when he did.

"Alright take off the blind fold."

She anxiously pulled off the blind fold and her jaw nearly hit the ground from what she saw.

It was a house, a nice large white house with pretty bushes lining the front and cute red shutters. She stood there in awe for awhile, but Ed grew inpatient and pulled her inside. He showed her around the house and all of the bedrooms. At the end of the tour, Ed turned to her with an excited grin.

"So did you like it?"

"Of course I do, but is this really ours?"

"Sure is and there isn't another house like it."

"But when did you have time to do all this?" she asked.

"Well building the house was easy. Al did it when he came up here for the wedding."

Cecelia cut in. "How the heck did he build a house in three weeks?"

"Alchemy, we just had to get all of the supplies here and bam it was done. The hard part was furnishing and painting it. I left that all up to Al and he had a lot of help too, so it didn't bother him."

"That's very sweet of him; we'll definitely have to thank him.

Cecelia pecked his lips.

"Now I have a present for you too."

She grabbed one of his hands and placed it on her stomach, concern quickly came on Ed's face.

"Oh no, what's wrong? Do you have a stomach ache or is it that summer flu you had?" he asked.

Cecelia laughed and shook her head. "No I'm fine, it's just that I'm pregnant."

His hand fell and he gaped at her. "W…what?"

"I'm pregnant Ed, we're gonna have a baby."

Ed picked her up and twirled her around, but he quickly set her back down.

"Crap, was that bad for the baby?"

"No it's okay."

"How far along are you?"

"Roughly two months, are you excited Ed?"

"Of course I am…I love you Cecelia."

"I love you too."

They both scurried up to their new bedroom and fell into the bed together. That night they consummated their marriage and spent the night in each other's arms, where they planned on staying forever and a little more.

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><p>Hooray now he knows! Well that's it, Open Up has officially ended. But this won't be the last we see of Cecelia BECAUSE I HAVE JUST STARTED A WRITING A SPIN OFF FOR OPEN UP, BUT THIS TIME ALPHONSE WILL BE THE LOVE INTEREST. IT'LL BE UP VERY SOON, SO CHECK IT OUT<p> 


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